British Citizen - Adopted in 1953

[CAR01]

Hi All, hoping that someone can assist me in another one of my queries as you have all been so helpful in the past. This relates to my mother, who was legally adopted in South Africa in 1953 by a British Citizen (mother) and lived in the UK as a child. Timeline of events are as follows :

*Born in 1950
*Legally adopted in South Africa in 1953 by British mother, all birth documents etc amended.
*Lived in UK 1955 to 1957
*1981 - British mother passed away in South Africa - we don't have a copy of death certificate or old British Passport
*2009 - My married mother arrived in UK on Ancestral Visa
*July 2010- My mother receives notification re. winter fuel allowance as she is over 60 and the correspondence is addressed to her in her Maiden Name as Miss xxxxx (adopted mothers surname). This benefit is only the entitlement of BC.
*Uncle and Aunt in UK advise that possibility my mother was registered British Citizen when living here as a child. My mother went to school here etc.
August 2010 to present - been to numerous government departments and written numerous letters trying to establish where the record of my mother in her maiden name is held. Very frustrating as no one seems to want to help or is prepared to provide the information required.

We are aware that the law changed last year in January regarding children of British mothers born before 1961 being able to register as a BC.

We are anxious to know if this can be done if my mother was legally adopted in South Africa, which was a commonwealth country at that time as South African adoptions are recognised here and my mother would have been a BC had the adoption taken place here. My grandmother never gave up her BC.

Basically, we would like to know 3 things :

a) Who do we contact, as we only have my mothers full name and maiden surname and date of birth and adoption, to find out if she was registered here as a child (as at that time, children would have needed to be included on the parents British passport) in order to get a copy of the registration certificate or at least to check whether this was done in 1955 - 1957.

b) How does my mother proceed if she is able to register as a BC and does the fact that she was adopted in South Africa by a British Citizen before 1961 allow this process to occur. Also, what documentation will be required to do this.

c) Who can we contact to find out what, if any, records (health, education etc.) are held in the UK.

Many thanks to all who could help. Much appreciated.

C. xx

[joh118]

Before 1950 there was generally no provision to acquire UK citizenship by adoption:
between 1 January 1950 and 31 December 1982, a person adopted in the UK by a citizen of the UK & Colonies (CUKC) acquired CUKC automatically if the adopter, or in the case of a joint adoption, the male adopter, was a CUKC.

was the adoption a joint adoption, if so, did the adoptive father have uk citizenship?

Therefore it appears that it depends on whether your mother's adoption was registered with the authorities when she came in 1955 to 1957.

Have you tried to apply for her adoption records in the UK? (if there was any)
Direct Gov seems to have a service. If you try this and they say there is no records, then you can be sure she wasn't registered and therfore not a British Citizen.