Since Civil Registration first began in 1837 births in England and Wales are required to be registered within 42 days.

The Birth Certificate
Certified copies of an entry of birth come in two different flavours: full and short. The full version gives the full name and date of birth of the individual, sex, the address of birth, registration district, date the birth was registered, the name and address of the registrant (and whether they marked the register), the name of the registrar, the name of the mother (including maiden name) and the name and occupation of the father of the child. If a name was added after registration, this was recorded in the end column in the record. From 1 April 1969 you can also get the birthplaces of both parents. The short version, though cheaper to order, only gives the full name of the individual, date of birth, address and registration district.

Pre-1969 Birth Certificate

Certified copies of an entry of birth (i.e. 'birth certificates') can be ordered directly from the GRO either online at their website, or by post, phone or fax. Ordering online is the cheapest option: £7 instead of £10 (correct as of 02/03/2008) for a full certificate if you provide the GRO reference from the GRO indexes as found on Jacomb.com. Certificates are also obtainable from the register office local to where the birth/marriage/death took place.

Births - Marriages - Deaths