Our paternity and DNA testing guide has been provided by Cellmark, the UK’s most experienced and recommended DNA paternity testing service. Established in 1987 Cellmark is accredited by the UK Ministry of Justice and, with over 20 years of specialist DNA paternity testing is one of the largest and most trusted paternity testing providers in Europe. For further information, or to discuss any issues surrounding DNA Paternity Testing please contact Cellmark's friendly and professional customer services team on 08000 362 522 or go online at www.cellmark.co.uk.
Accreditation of DNA testing laboratories
There are many different companies providing paternity test services particularly on the internet, many of which offer a variety of tests, prices and sampling methods.
Many services are operated from overseas and indeed samples are sent abroad for analysis from organisations acting as brokers or middlemen in the UK. There may also be variation in the accuracy of results depending on how the paternity test is done and what type of testing methods are used and how many individual DNA tests are used by the testing laboratory to analyse each paternity case.
The Ministry of Justice maintains a list of companies which are accredited to carry out parentage tests directed by the civil courts in England and Wales under section 20 of the Family Law Reform Act 1969. Currently, to be accepted on the list, paternity testing services have to attain ISO 17025 accreditation and must adhere to the voluntary Code of Practice.
ISO 17025
ISO17025 is a global standard for the technical competence of calibration and testing laboratories. In addition to establishing quality system, documentation and personnel requirements, it directs calibration labs to:
- analyze the uncertainty of each measurement
- incorporate the uncertainty into the test procedure and/or test limits
- provide the uncertainties with the calibration certificate and results
Reporting the uncertainty qualifies the accuracy of the measurement and aids understanding when results from different labs are compared.
The Code of Practice
The “voluntary” Code of Practice was drawn up by the Department of Health following discussions with representatives from commissioners of genetic paternity testing services, providers of such services, patient groups, clinicians, academics and scientists. (The code is currently being revised to produce a “Best Practice guide”.)
However all the Ministry of Justice requires is a letter stipulating that your organisation will adhere to the code - unfortunately they have neither the time, nor the power to police and enforce the market.
The decision to have a paternity test is one faced by thousands of people every year, often in complicated emotional circumstances. It is therefore essential that you choose the right company to carry out your DNA test. The quality, accuracy and conclusiveness of the DNA testing and the service you receive should be important considerations.
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