The Parental Order process in 23 short videos

It's easier to understand a process when you can see it. You can read that the e-Bundle Hub builds your court bundle and still not know what that looks like in practice.

So we've made 23 short videos that show each part of the Parental Order process in PO Navigator, from "do I need a solicitor?" to the Cafcass visit. Most are under 30 seconds. The longest is under four minutes.

There are two kinds:

• Short clips (music only) show one feature at a time.
• Walkthroughs are narrated and subtitled, and take you through a whole screen.

Every video plays properly on a phone. Click any title below to watch it. They're listed in the order you'll need them, so if you're partway through, skip to your stage.

Start here

• PO Navigator in 45 seconds (0:44): the whole product, quickly

Before you start

The first question is whether you should be doing this yourself at all.

• Do you need a solicitor? The 2-minute check (0:30): how the free check works and what it tells you
• A solicitor, or PO Navigator? (0:30): a straight comparison, including when you should use a solicitor
• The six-month clock (0:29): the deadline that shapes everything else

If you only watch one of these, make it the six-month one.

Getting set up

• Your first 10 minutes in PO Navigator (1:40, narrated): what to do when you first create an account
• Your dashboard, explained (2:02, narrated): where everything is and what it tells you
• Your Journey Timeline, explained (1:58, narrated): your whole case, stage by stage
• Your Journey Timeline (0:24): the short version

Before the birth, and in country

A lot of the work that saves trouble later happens before you fly home. That includes your surrogate's consent, which has no legal effect if she signs it less than six weeks after the birth.

• Before the birth: what to do now (0:29)
• The Mexico in-country guide (0:28)
• The Colombia in-country guide (0:23)
• The North Cyprus in-country guide (0:23)

The forms

• Form C51, explained field by field (0:24): the application itself
• The Form C51 guide, explained (2:03, narrated): the same form, walked through in full
• Form C52: your surrogate's consent (0:24)
• Form A101A, ready for the notary (0:24): this one has to be right before anyone signs
• Instant Answer on any field (0:24): ask about the field you're stuck on, without leaving it

Building the court bundle

• The e-Bundle Hub in action (0:24)
• The e-Bundle Hub, step by step (3:48, narrated): the longest video, because the bundle is the biggest task in the process
• What a court-ready bundle looks like (0:30): the finished result, so you know what you're working towards

Filing, and what comes after

• Filing day: sending your C51 to the court (1:32, narrated): what to send, where, and what "issued" means for your deadline
• Preparing for the Cafcass visit (0:28): what the reporter is there to do
• Ask the SOL team (0:28): when you'd rather ask a person

Where else to find them

All 23 are on the showcase page, grouped into the same stages as this article. Some clips also appear elsewhere on the site where they're relevant, including the home page, why we charge and the end of the free two-minute check.

Inside the app, each narrated walkthrough also sits on the page it explains. Look for the "Watch the tour" button in the corner of your dashboard, your Journey Timeline, the C51 guide and the filing-day step.

Most of the videos are free to watch. The e-Bundle Hub walkthrough needs full access, because the Hub itself does. The two-minute check and the C51 guide are free.

These videos use a demo family and show the software, not your case. They are not legal advice, and some cases do need a solicitor. The two-minute check will tell you if yours is one of them.

See also: how to apply for a Parental Order · the six-month deadline · all guides