Disabled Child Turning 18? Do You Need a Deputyship Order?
For years you have handled everything for your child: the bank account, the benefits, the appointments, the forms. Then their 18th birthday comes into view, and someone tells you that once they are an adult, you will no longer have the legal right to do it all.
That is broadly true. When your disabled child turns 18, your parental responsibility ends. If they cannot manage their own money, no one has automatic authority to manage it for them, including you. For many families the answer is a deputyship order from the Court of Protection. Not every family needs one, though, and much of daily life carries on without any court order at all. This guide explains which route fits your child, and when to start.
This guide is for parents in England and Wales of a child with a learning disability, autism or other special needs who will need help with decisions as an adult. The key points:
• Parental responsibility ends at 18. From 16, the Mental Capacity Act 2005 applies, and your child is presumed able to make their own decisions unless it is shown they cannot.
• If your child only has benefits, a free DWP appointeeship may be all you need for their money.
• If your child can understand what it means, they can make a Lasting Power of Attorney at 18. That is simpler and cheaper than deputyship.
• If your child lacks capacity and has savings, a Child Trust Fund or other money, you will usually need a property and financial affairs deputyship order.
• Personal welfare deputyship, for care and health decisions, is still uncommon, but a 2026 Court of Appeal decision has made it more realistic for parents.
• You can apply before your child turns 18, and a parent does not need the court's permission to do so.
In this guide
• What changes when your child turns 18?
• Do you need a deputyship order? Three routes compared
• The two types of deputyship order
• Can you apply before your child turns 18?
• What happens to a Child Trust Fund at 18?
• What does being a deputy involve?
• What does a deputyship order cost?
• What happens when you can no longer be the deputy?
What changes when your child turns 18?
When a child turns 18 in England and Wales, parental responsibility ends. If a disabled young adult cannot manage their own money, their parents have no automatic legal authority over it. They usually need a DWP appointeeship, a Lasting Power of Attorney or a Court of Protection deputyship order.
Until 18, you can make decisions for your child because you have parental responsibility. In law a child is a person under the age of 18, so when your child turns 18, that authority ends. The government's toolkit for parents of young people who lack capacity puts it plainly: once they turn 18, a young person legally becomes an adult.
The rules on mental capacity start earlier. The Mental Capacity Act 2005 applies from age 16. It presumes that everyone it covers has capacity, meaning the ability to make a particular decision for themselves, unless it is shown that they cannot. Capacity is judged one decision at a time. Your child may be able to choose what to eat or who to see, but not be able to run a bank account or weigh up a medical treatment.
What you can still do without a court order
Parents often fear being shut out of their child's life on the morning of the 18th birthday. That is not how it works. Section 5 of the Mental Capacity Act protects anyone caring for a person who lacks capacity, as long as they reasonably believe the person lacks capacity for that decision and act in their best interests. Helping your child wash, dress, eat, get to appointments and live their daily life carries on as before.
What section 5 does not give you is authority over your child's money and property. The government toolkit explains that no one has an automatic right to access another adult's accounts or property, even a parent who paid into them. You cannot run a bank account in your child's name, take money out of their Child Trust Fund or deal with an inheritance for them simply because you are their parent. Bigger care and health decisions are made by the professionals involved, in your child's best interests, after consulting you.
Do you need a deputyship order? Three routes compared
There are three ways a parent can get formal authority for an adult child. Which one fits depends on two questions: can your child understand and make a Lasting Power of Attorney, and what is there to manage?
| DWP appointeeship | Lasting Power of Attorney | Deputyship order | |
|---|---|---|---|
| What it covers | Benefits only, such as Personal Independence Payment and Universal Credit | Money and property, health and welfare, or both, as your child chooses | What the court order says: usually money and property, less often care and health |
| Who decides | The Department for Work and Pensions | Your child, if they have capacity to make one | The Court of Protection |
| When it fits | Your child has nothing to manage beyond benefits | Your child is 18 or over and understands what they are signing | Your child lacks capacity and there is more than benefits to manage |
| Cost | Free | £92 to register each LPA | £432 court fee per application, then yearly supervision fees |
Fees from GOV.UK, checked 30 October 2026.
Appointeeship: when your child only has benefits
A DWP appointee is someone the Department for Work and Pensions authorises to claim and manage benefits for a person who cannot manage their own affairs. It covers benefits only, not savings or a Child Trust Fund.
If your child cannot manage their own benefits, you can apply to the Department for Work and Pensions to become their appointee. You claim the benefits for them, receive the payments and spend them in their best interests. Appointeeship is free. GOV.UK's own deputyship guidance says you do not need to be a deputy if you are only looking after someone's benefits.
The timing comes earlier than many parents expect. Disability Living Allowance for children stops at 16, and your child will need to apply for Personal Independence Payment instead. You can apply to be their appointee from 16.
The limit is that appointeeship covers benefits and nothing else. As the government toolkit explains, it gives no authority over savings in a bank account, and it does not let you access a Child Trust Fund.
Lasting Power of Attorney: if your child can make one
A Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) is a legal document in which a person chooses who can make decisions for them. To make one, your child must be 18 or over and have the mental capacity to make it at the time they sign. Because capacity is judged decision by decision, some young people with a learning disability can understand and choose to make an LPA, with the right support, even if they could not manage their money day to day.
Where it is possible, an LPA is usually the better route: your child chooses who acts for them, there is no court application and no yearly supervision fee. You can talk it through with your child and prepare the paperwork before their birthday, so it is ready to sign at 18. Our Lasting Power of Attorney service can help you work out whether it is an option.
Deputyship order: if your child lacks capacity
A deputyship order is a court order from the Court of Protection that appoints someone, called a deputy, to make specified decisions for a person who lacks the mental capacity to make them. For a disabled young adult, the deputy is very often a parent. The order sets out exactly what the deputy can and cannot do.
You will usually need one if your child lacks capacity to manage their money and has, or will have, more than benefits: savings, a Child Trust Fund or Junior ISA, money left to them in someone's will, or a compensation award. For a fuller explanation of the court itself, see our guide to the Court of Protection.
The two types of deputyship order
There are two types of deputy. You can apply to be one or both, but each is a separate application with its own court fee. A deputy must be 18 or over, and the court can appoint two or more deputies for the same person, so both parents can act.
Property and financial affairs deputyship
This is the order most parents need. It lets you run your child's bank accounts, look after their savings, pay their bills and deal with money they inherit. These applications are usually decided on paper, without a hearing. Our step-by-step guide to the deputyship application explains the forms, who you must tell and what happens after you apply.
Before the order is issued, you will usually need to set up a security bond, a type of insurance that protects your child's money. You will then be supervised by the Office of the Public Guardian.
Personal welfare (health and welfare) deputyship
A personal welfare deputy (often called a health and welfare deputy) can make decisions about the person's care, medical treatment and where they live, as far as the court order allows. These orders are much rarer. The Court of Appeal recorded that in 2025 the Office of the Public Guardian received over 12,500 property and affairs deputyship orders, and just 174 for personal welfare.
For years, parents who applied were often told that welfare deputies are only for "the most difficult cases". That phrase comes from paragraph 8.38 of the Mental Capacity Act Code of Practice, and GOV.UK's guidance still says the court will usually only appoint a welfare deputy in limited situations. The courts have moved on:
• Re Lawson, Mottram and Hopton [2019] EWCOP 22. The Court of Protection said that refusing a welfare deputyship is "not a presumption, nor should it even be regarded as the starting point", and that the Code's wording needed to be revisited.
• Parr v Cheshire East Council [2026] EWCOP 1 (T3), January 2026. A mother applied when her daughter, who has a severe learning disability, was 17. The Court of Protection appointed her as her daughter's welfare deputy. The judge also stressed that a welfare deputy is not needed merely because a child with complex needs has become an adult, and that in most cases one will not be required.
• Re HB [2026] EWCA Civ 960, 24 July 2026. The parents of a 22-year-old man who is autistic, non-verbal and has a severe learning disability had been refused. The Court of Appeal allowed their appeal. It decided they should be able to act as his welfare deputies, jointly and severally, for the foreseeable future, and sent the case back to the Court of Protection only to settle the exact scope and length of the order. It said paragraph 8.38 of the Code "is acknowledged now to be plain wrong".
Re HB matters for families like yours because the Court of Appeal listed situations where a welfare deputy may be right. They include a parent's close relationship with the person, a continuing stream of decisions rather than a single one, a young person moving from childhood to adulthood and from children's to adult services, and public bodies failing to apply the Mental Capacity Act properly, particularly when consulting families. It also suggested a time-limited order for parents of a young person moving into adulthood.
None of this makes a welfare order automatic. A deputy cannot force a council or the NHS to fund a particular service, and where one decision needs making, the court may simply make that decision itself. But a parent's application should now be judged on the facts of their child's life, not turned away on the old wording.
One point catches families out. If your child's care means they are under continuous supervision and not free to leave, for example in supported living, that may amount to a deprivation of liberty. It needs separate legal authorisation, which a welfare deputy cannot give on their own.
Can you apply before your child turns 18?
Yes. Parents can apply to the Court of Protection before their child turns 18. A parent with parental responsibility does not need the court's permission while the child is under 18, and an order made before 18 carries on into adulthood.
The government toolkit for parents says you can apply while your young person is under 18 if you believe they will lack capacity to make decisions when they turn 18. What the court can do depends on their age:
• Under 16. The court can only deal with money and property, and only if it is likely your child will still lack capacity for those decisions at 18 (section 18(3) of the Act). This matters mainly where a child already has money of their own, such as a compensation award. No one can be a personal welfare deputy for a child under 16.
• Age 16 and 17. The Mental Capacity Act applies, so either type of deputyship can be considered. A parent with parental responsibility does not need the court's permission to apply while their child is under 18.
• Age 18 and over. Your child is an adult and the application is made in the usual way.
An order made before 18 still applies after the birthday, so there is no need to go back to court. The Parr case above is a real example: the application was made at 17. Many families start gathering evidence at 17, because the capacity assessment is usually the slowest part to arrange.
What happens to a Child Trust Fund at 18?
When a Child Trust Fund matures at 18, only the young person can use it. If they lack the capacity to manage it, a parent or relative needs a financial deputyship order from the Court of Protection. Being their appointee is not enough.
This is often the moment families first discover they need a deputyship order. On your child's 18th birthday their Child Trust Fund matures and your child automatically takes over the account. Until they withdraw or transfer the money, no one else can get at it. A Junior ISA turns into an adult ISA at 18 in the same way.
GOV.UK confirms that if your child lacks the capacity to manage the account, you, or a close friend or relative, need to apply to the Court of Protection.
There is some good news on cost. You will not need to pay the court fee if you apply only for Child Trust Fund access before your child's 18th birthday and they have savings of less than £4,250 or a monthly income of less than £1,420. After 18, the fee can usually still be waived, but you have to ask for it. The government once consulted on letting families take out small sums without going to court, but that scheme did not go ahead. In November 2026 the government announced new legislation to let families go directly to Child Trust Fund providers instead. Until that is in force, a court order is still needed.
What does being a deputy involve?
Being your child's deputy is a continuing role, not a one-off form. GOV.UK sets out the responsibilities. In short, you must:
• Act in your child's best interests, and involve them in decisions as far as they can take part.
• Choose the option that restricts their rights and freedom least.
• Keep their money separate from yours, and never hold their money or property in your own name.
• Send a report to the Office of the Public Guardian every year, explaining the decisions you made and why.
A deputyship order lasts until it is cancelled or it expires. Some orders are open-ended, and some are made for a set period, which the courts have suggested can suit a young adult. For a child who will always need support, the role may last for much of your life, which is why it helps to think early about who will come after you.
What does a deputyship order cost?
The Court of Protection fee is £432 for each application, so applying for both types costs £864 in court fees. If the court decides a hearing is needed, there is a further £266. Once appointed, a new deputy pays a one-off £100 assessment fee and a yearly supervision fee of £320, or £35 for some property and affairs deputies managing less than £21,000. Fees can be reduced or waived on a low income.
Our fixed fee for a standard deputyship application is £3,500 plus VAT (and disbursements). The full breakdown, including the security bond and how fee help works, is on our deputyship fees page.
What happens when you can no longer be the deputy?
This is the question many parents worry about most, and the law gives you some say in the answer. When the court appoints deputies, it can at the same time appoint one or more people to take over if a named event happens, such as a parent dying or becoming unable to act. Appointing both parents together, and naming a brother, sister or other trusted person as a successor deputy, can spare your family a second application at a much harder time.
The other half of the plan is your own will. Leaving money outright to a disabled child can affect their means-tested benefits and care funding, and they may need a deputy to manage it. A trust in your will, often a disabled person's trust, is the usual answer. Our guide to the disabled person's trust explains how it works. Our trusts service can help you set one up.
Frequently asked questions
What do I do when my autistic son or daughter turns 18?
Start by working out what they can decide for themselves and what needs managing. If they can understand a Lasting Power of Attorney, that is usually the simplest route. If they only have benefits, an appointeeship may be enough. If they lack capacity and have savings, a Child Trust Fund or other money, you will usually need a property and financial affairs deputyship order, ideally applied for before the birthday.
Can a parent be a deputy?
Yes. A deputy must be 18 or over, and deputies are usually close relatives. Parents are very often the people the court appoints for a disabled young adult, and both parents can be appointed together.
How long does it take to get a deputyship order?
There is no official timescale, and the court does not currently publish one. Preparing the papers for a straightforward property and financial affairs application usually takes us 4 to 6 weeks, mostly waiting for the capacity assessment. How long the court then takes varies, which is why starting at the age of 17 makes sense. If money is needed urgently, the court can be asked for an interim order.
Do I need a solicitor to apply?
No. You can apply yourself, and the Court of Protection has a helpline. Families often use a solicitor where a welfare application is needed, where there is a Child Trust Fund or compensation award, or to avoid the forms being sent back.
Does this apply in Scotland and Northern Ireland?
No. This guide covers England and Wales only. Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own laws and processes for adults who lack capacity.
Talk it through with us
If your child is approaching 18, you do not need to have every answer yet. The main things are to work out which route fits your child, and to start early enough that there is no gap.
This guide is general information about the law in England and Wales. It is not advice on your family's situation, which will always depend on your child's needs and circumstances.
If you would like to talk through whether your child needs a deputyship order or an LPA, call us on 020 8515 2790 for a free, no-obligation 20-minute chat, or send us an enquiry. If it is easier for your family, we can come to you at home. You can also read about our Court of Protection and deputyship service.
Author Bio:
Nasreen Akhter is the founding director of Ash Hill Solicitors and a private client solicitor with over a decade of experience in probate, wills, estate planning and elderly client care. Known for her calm, compassionate approach, she guides individuals and families through life's most sensitive legal matters with clarity and care.
Nasreen is also an accredited civil and commercial mediator, and is listed on the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) register. Outside of work, she's a dedicated mum and chairs Happy Orphans Worldwide, a charity supporting vulnerable children worldwide.
