You can only get online access to the GP services of a child aged under 16 if you are their parent or guardian with legal parental responsibility. Find out more about parental responsibility on GOV.UK.
Parents and guardians accessing information for children aged 0-10 years
We offer access for parents/guardians of children under the age of 11. This is for booking appointments and requesting medication only, not for viewing the medical record. Your access will be turned off automatically once the child is 11 years old. To gain access to a child’s information, you will need to attend reception with your ID and proof of parental responsibility (e.g. birth certificate).
Parental Identification and further information
Parent and guardians accessing information for children aged 11-15 years
For children aged 11-15 years, access can be provided to parents/guardians for an agreed time frame. Parental/guardian access is not available for patients aged 16 and over, except for specific circumstances e.g. learning disability or a housebound patient. All proxy access requests for patients aged 15 years and under are reviewed by a clinician first.
Children’s rights, capacity and consent
When your online access will stop
If you would like access to a record of someone aged 16 and over
When a young person is 16 years old, you may be able to access GP services on their behalf if they want you to be their proxy, or if they have a condition that means they cannot manage their health and care on their own.
If you are applying for access to a patient record who is aged 16 or over, you must attend reception with them. If the patient is able to give consent, both the patient and the person requesting access will need to provide photo ID. If the patient is unable to attend reception (e.g. housebound) or unable to consent (e.g. severe learning disability) then only ID from the person requesting access is required, not the patient.
Adults who cannot understand and agree to proxy access
To set up an online GP account for the person you care for, or to access an online account that they already have, you must be named as a ‘trusted person’ by the person and their GP. This is also known as ‘proxy access’.
To set up proxy access or become a trusted person, you will need the person’s consent. To give their informed consent, they must have the capacity to do so under the Mental Capacity Act. This means they must be able to:
- understand the information relevant to the decision
- retain that information for long enough to make a decision
- use or weigh up that information as part of the decision-making process
- communicate their decision to others
If the patient lacks capacity to decide on the level of access or are are unable to sign the form, please ask the GP or practice manager for advice.
The GP may ask to see the person alone before giving you online access as a trusted person. They may wish to ask whether there is any information in their medical file that they would like to be kept private.
The GP can decide not to give you access to any or all of the person’s online services if they feel it is not in their best interests.
The decision on whether to appoint you as a trusted person may take around two weeks, depending on how busy the GP is. It may be possible to make the decision more quickly if the need is urgent. If this is the case, ask to speak to the GP.