As a stepparent you can adopt your stepchild (subject to you being over 21 and having lived with your stepchild for six months or more), but there are also other options to give you legal rights and responsibilities without ending the child’s legal relationship with their birth parent. For example, an adoption order would mean your child would no longer be entitled to any inheritance or maintenance payments from their birth parent and you would have full, permanent legal responsibility for them, even if you were to separate or divorce from your partner or spouse in the future. By talking through your situation with a specialist lawyer, you will be able work out what's best for your family.