What has happened so far?
- The Bill has completed all stages in the House of Commons after being introduced to Parliament on 17th December 2024, and completed its passage through the House of Commons on 18th March 2025.
- It was introduced to the House of Lords on 19th March 2025, and had its Second Reading in the House of Lords on 1st May.
- It is now part way through the Committee stage in the House of Lords and the final date for the Committee stage is set for 18th September 2025.
- You can follow the progress of the Bill here.
What will happen next?
- The next stage, following the Committee stage, is the ‘Report Stage’ which is where it’s possible to see the Government make concessions, although we aren’t expecting to see any major changes to the Bill.
- We don’t know exactly when the Report Stage will be, but it can’t take place until 14 days after the Committee stage has ended.
- Then there will be a Third Reading in November or December followed by consideration of amendments, commonly referred to as the ‘ping pong’ stage. This is where the House of Commons consider amendments proposed by the Lords. This can’t go on indefinitely though because the Lords can only delay legislation for up to a year. Ultimately the elected House of Commons could invoke the Parliament Act and overrule the Lords, although this rarely happens as the Lords are reluctant to defeat a Government bill with a democratic mandate.
- You can find a list of proposed amendments here.
- It is probable that Royal Assent (where the Bill is signed off by the King) will occur in December or thereabouts.
- After that we can expect a public consultation on draft statutory guidance for local authorities. Such guidance is secondary legislation which will determine how the Bill is put into practice.
- It seems likely that all the new legislation will be in place by September 2026 at the latest.
What can we do?
Please keep an eye on all the action groups who are trying to promote parental rights in the face of what is a very authoritarian Bill. The next protest is on 10th September 2025 in London. It will be well worth attending, with high quality speakers and a range of different points of view on issues relating to the Bill.
ParentPower will be keeping you informed. You can also find out more about plans for action on the Stop the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill website.
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