Hello, we changed name after arrest due to unusual name. Was simple - did a declaration at a solicitor's not deed poll. Was still charged in original name at arrest so first appearance was real name. Sentencing was in new name. Reg has both I believe. I am pleased we did it.

Hi, my person changed his surname by Deedpoll between being arrested, charged and the Plea Hearing but the judge said that at trial he would be referred to as xxx also know as yyy. She was a particularly nasty judge though . Since then, he has been arrested again and charged for related offences and has only been referred to in court documents for these new offences by his new surname .



i hope that helps?

We were advised (rightly or wrongly) that there wasn't much point changing before sentencing because the courts/judge would refer to him by his name at the point of arrest. The press could also potentially report both names in the article - so his new identity could be exposed. It's the nature of our situation, damned if you do, damned if you don't! Then I hear stories like Shocked2025 and wish we had, but trying to work out the right approach under extreme stress, with no one size fits all, creates decision paralysis!

The fall out from the press meant he was forced to do it, because it was significantly preventing him from moving forward and he kept losing employment - still is to be fair, 18 months on - despite the change.

You can apply for an enrolled deedpoll (which has a cost attached) or an unenrolled deedpoll (you can find templates and advice on the Gov.uk website - and it's free). We opted for an unenrolled deed poll due to his financial situation, which we found was a document accepted by HMRC and DVLA. Then we had to get the unenrolled deed poll signed and stamped by a local solicitor using his new driving license as evidence, so that he could get a new passport. Everything's come through now which is great, but the biggest employment barrier remains the conviction, where you are required legally to declare it - and 9 times out of 10 they do ask at application or interview.

My OH was understandably reluctant to change his name at first, it was the essence of who he was and it felt like he'd had absolutely everything else taken away and this was the last thing he could hold on to (his identity!) - but when he was left with no other choice after having his character and reputation stripped away by the press, he had to reluctantly come round to the idea.

That's something that infuriates me about the public perceptions of name changes (well of many things, but whilst we're on the subject of names) - the VAST majority are just individuals trying to move on and be useful to society. It's societal shaming that forces them to do it, not necessarily to hide their identity to cover up further offending. (The SHPO and SOR don't care about a name change, which is where the monitoring takes place).

NACRO can help support with a disclosure statement for employment, but they warned me the success rate can be hit and miss too.

Good luck and feel free to PM if you need to pick my brains! X

Just one more thought - he'll need a provider for his car insurance, most mainstream providers don't cover people with these offences. We've used Admiral as they only ask for motoring offences and are reasonably priced.

Home insurance is affected too - I'm just looking in to that now as we're hoping he'll be able to move in in a few months, once social services have signed us off. Options are smaller but NACRO can advise - I've been told to expect it to increase by 50-100%.


All the above said, once unspent (end of SHPO +1 year) you can go back to mainstream cheaper providers.




Sorry for the tangent, but thought it was worth sharing again. I've seen similar posts over the years, but it's always helpful I think to have in recent feeds :-)

xx