Ordering Certificates

So you have found the record in the index ... the next step is to order your certificate.

Below we explain what you will find on the certificate and where you can get it from.

For further information on related topics about Civil Registration click here

What can be found on a Certificate?

The Certificates may contain some or all of the following:

Births :

District, Date & Place of Birth,
Child's ForeNames & Surname, Child's Sex,
Father's Name, Fathers Place of Birth, Father's Occupation,
Mother's Name, Mother's Occupation, Mother's Place of Birth, Mother's Usual Address,
Informant's Name, Informants Qualification, Informant's Address, Informant's Signature,
Date of Registration,Registrar's Name & Signature,
Child's Revised Name (if any, after registration).

Marriages :

District, Church, Parish, Location,
Date of Marriage, Forename & Surnames, Ages,
Marital Conditions, Professions, Addresses,
Father's Forename & Surname, Father's Occupations, for both parties present.
Witness names, Priest/Vicar's Name,& Signature

Deaths :

District, Location, Date & Place of Death,
Forename & Surname, Sex, Maiden Name,
Date & Place of Birth, Occupation, Usual Address,
Informant's Forename & Surname,
Informant's Qualification, Informant's Address,
Cause of Death, Signature of Informant,
Registration Date, Registrar's Signature.

Some useful tips about the information on the certificates can be found here

Where can I get a certificate?

There are two ways you can get a certificate:

From the General Register Office
From the local Register Office relevant to the certificate

You need to bear in mind, however, that there are errors in the orginal indexes and in the transcription of the indexes carried out by FreeBMD. Great care has been taken by FreeBMD to ensure that the transcription is as accurate as possible but it is inevitable that there will be errors and FreeBMD cannot be held responsible for the consequences of these errors. You should check any entry with a copy of the index before ordering certificates.

Obtaining a certificate from the GRO

For current information on fees and current ordering procedures click here .

You will need the GRO reference, that is the volume and page number given in the search result.

Obtaining a certificate from a local Register Office

You need to find the Register Office that is relevant to the birth, marriage or death you are interested in. This can be found here where you can look up the registration district which then has a link (Registers now in...) to details of the local Register Office.

In order to obtain the actual certificate it is best to ring the office and find out what their process is for ordering certificates, as it does vary from office to office.

Note that the GRO reference, that is volume and page number, is not relevant to ordering from a local office. This can be seen as a benefit as it means that possible errors in the GRO reference do not impact getting a certificate, offsetting the extra effort in finding the right office.

A registrar in a local Register Office has advised "GRO will provide you with a photocopy of the actual entry but if you apply to the relevant register office in most cases you will receive a handwritten copy. This is useful if the original is difficult to read. The registration staff have had basic training in deciphering the writing and will also have access to many more records written by the same person and so can compare."

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