Sarah Jones

SurrogacyUK publishes new Working Group research on surrogacy law reform

February 2026

SurrogacyUK

Today, SurrogacyUK publishes a major new research report produced by the SurrogacyUK Working Group on Surrogacy Law Reform:

Surrogacy in the UK: Myth Busting and Reform – 10 Years On – Third Report of the SurrogacyUK Working Group on Surrogacy Law Reform

This landmark report brings together academic research, legal analysis, policy expertise and lived experience to examine the current realities of surrogacy in and from the UK and to set out why reform of surrogacy law remains urgently needed.

About the SurrogacyUK Working Group research

This report is the latest output of the SurrogacyUK Working Group on Surrogacy Law Reform, a group that has shaped SurrogacyUK’s evidence-based advocacy for over a decade.

It is authored and contributed to by leading experts in surrogacy law, ethics and policy, alongside those with extensive lived experience:

  • Professor Kirsty Horsey, Professor of Law at Loughborough University and a leading authority on surrogacy law reform
  • Natalie Smith, former SurrogacyUK trustee, parent through surrogacy, and Chair of the SurrogacyUK Working Group
  • Sarah Norcross, Director of the Progress Educational Trust and a nationally recognised expert in fertility law, policy and ethics
  • Sarah Jones, CEO of SurrogacyUK, surrogate five times and long-standing advocate for ethical, altruistic surrogacy
  • Dr Bianca Jackson, family law barrister at Coram Chambers and specialist in surrogacy and legal parenthood

The report builds on the Working Group’s previous publications in 2015 and 2018, updating the evidence base and responding to significant legal, social and international developments since then.

Why this research matters now

Surrogacy has been regulated in the UK for 40 years, yet the law underpinning it has changed very little. During that time, surrogacy practice has evolved significantly while legal uncertainty, misinformation and persistent myths continue to shape decision-making.

Since SurrogacyUK’s first report in 2015:

  • The number of children born through surrogacy has increased
  • A growing proportion of UK intended parents pursue surrogacy overseas, often due to perceived legal risk at home
  • More same-sex couples are creating families through surrogacy
  • Data on surrogacy remains inconsistent and incomplete
  • Longstanding myths about surrogacy continue to influence public and media narratives

Decades of research consistently show that children born through surrogacy do well, particularly when raised in supportive, planned and transparent family environments.

“Children born through surrogacy should not begin life in legal uncertainty. The law must reflect their lived reality and protect their welfare from birth.”
SurrogacyUK Working Group on Surrogacy Law Reform

Key findings and recommendations

Drawing on updated data, legal analysis and new survey evidence, the SurrogacyUK Working Group concludes that surrogacy law reform remains essential.

The report finds that:

  • UK surrogacy law is seriously out of date and no longer reflects reality
  • Reform must prioritise the welfare and lifelong interests of surrogate-born children
  • Intended parents are often pushed towards international surrogacy by inadequacies in UK law
  • The principle of altruistic surrogacy must be protected.
  • Legal parenthood should, wherever possible, be determined at a point that avoids prolonged uncertainty for children and families
  • More robust, joined-up data collection and research is urgently needed

The report strongly supports the draft Surrogacy Bill produced by the Law Commission of England and Wales and the Scottish Law Commission, including the proposed pathway to parenthood, which would allow intended parents to be recognised as legal parents at birth when strict safeguards are met – a change supported by many surrogates themselves.

A clear call to government

Despite extensive consultation and a five-year review process, the UK Government has not yet brought the draft Surrogacy Bill before Parliament. This delay continues to leave families navigating uncertainty and contributes to unnecessary risk, both in the UK and overseas.

The SurrogacyUK Working Group calls for:

  • The Surrogacy Bill to be put before Parliament without further delay
  • Continued engagement with the surrogacy community and professionals
  • Effective regulation of surrogacy organisations
  • The creation of a national Surrogacy Register to support access to origins information
  • Updated NHS, education and professional guidance that reflects modern family formation

Read the Report

Surrogacy in the UK: Myth Busting and Reform – 10 Years On
Third Report of the SurrogacyUK Working Group on Surrogacy Law Reform
Published December 2025