Stillbirth Registration

Please remember that you can only register those births which took place within the City of Southampton boundaries with us, at the Southampton Register Office. Please contact our office and speak to a registration officer who will make an appointment for you

If your baby was born at the Princess Anne Hospital, and you are still at the hospital, please ask the ward clerk to see if there is a registration officer available, so you can arrange for the registration to take place there. If you were not able to register the birth at the hospital, you will need to contact our office to make an appointment.

If for some reason, you are not able to register the birth in Southampton you can make a declaration of the facts at any Registration district in England or Wales (please telephone them first for an appointment). The information will then posted to the district where the birth occurred, the registration will then take place and relevant documents posted to you. The Register Office you attend will be able to advise you on the timescales involved with your particular registration.

The people qualified to register the birth of a still born baby are:

• The Mother - Whether you are married to the father or not you can register on your own. If you are not married to the father and wish to have his name included on the registration, he must attend with you. However, if you are not able to attend the register office together (ie if the father is working abroad), there are ways which may allow you to register. Please contact this office for further advice.

• Married Father - If you are married to the mother, you can register on your own and there is no need for your wife to attend the registration.

• Unmarried Mother and/or Father - If you are not married to each other, the father's details can only be included on the registration if you both attend together. However, if you are not able to attend the register office together (ie if the father is working abroad), there are ways which may allow you to add the father's details. Please contact this office for further advice. If the mother is too distressed to attend, and you still want to register the birth, the father's details will only be entered in the section asking who registered the birth. No information will be contained in the section for father's details.

• Civil Partner - If you were the civil partner of the mother at the time the baby was conceived, or are registering under the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act (HFE), you can both attend, but only one of you is required to sign the registration.

You will need to bring with you the Medical Certificate of Stillbirth which will have been issued to by either the midwife or doctor that delivered your baby.

To make sure we can help you through this process, we need you to make sure you know or have the information listed below;

Please note that if a father/civil partner’s details are not to be entered in the register, any information below that relates to the father/civil partner is not required.

• The date and place of birth

• Any names you wish to give the baby

• Mother and father’s/civil partner full names by which they are known, including any former names including spellings and accents. (A passport or id card may be useful to bring)

• Date and place of birth of both the mother and father/civil partner

• Occupation of the mother and father/civil partner

• Mother and father’s/civil partner’s home address (including postcode) when the baby was born

• If married to baby’s father or in a civil partnership, the date on which the marriage/civil partnership took place

• We will issue you with a certificate for burial or cremation. This is the form you need to give to the funeral director or person who is arranging the funeral.

• A certificate of registration - this certificate provides proof that your baby has been registered. The certificate will include the names you have given to your child, the date of their birth, and the registration district

• A stillbirth certificate – this certificate is an exact copy of the details entered in the register including the parent’s details.

We do not make any charge for these documents.

Unlike requests for other copy certificates, we are only able to issue copy certificates from recent events.

The General Register Office (Southport), holds the records of all stillbirths registered in England and Wales since 1 July 1927. Please see the link at the bottom of this page.

Certified copies of these records can only be obtained with the Registrar General's consent. The following conditions apply:

• A certificate will only be issued to the mother or father of a stillborn child (The father's details would need to be recorded in the register entry for him to be able to obtain a certificate).

• Siblings may apply if their mother and father are no longer alive. They should send details of their parents' dates of death with their application.