• Appointments are available Monday to Friday, between 9am-4.30pm. 
• Appointments aren’t available on weekends or bank holidays. 

To keep parents and colleagues as safe as possible during the Covid-19 pandemic, we have changed the way in which you can register your baby.

Your child’s registration will now take place in two stages.

• Firstly, you should make an appointment for a registrar to call you. During this phone call the registrar will ask registration questions (see below).
• At the end of your call, your registrar will make a second appointment for you. This appointment will take place in person at the register office, and will allow you to check and sign the register page.

During your telephone appointment we’ll ask you about your baby:

• Their first name, middle name(s) and surname
• Whether they are a boy or a girl
• When they were born – this will just be the date, unless you’re registering twins or triplets etc, in which case we’ll also need the time when each baby was born

And we’ll ask about you, and the baby’s other parent if you’re both being included on the birth certificate:

Please note,

• if the child's parents were married to each other, or in a civil partnership at the time of the child's birth, either parent may take the phone call.
• If the child's parents were not married to each other, or in a civil partnership at the time of birth, and both parents wish to be named on the birth certificate, both parents must be present during the phone call. If a the second parent's details are not to be included on the birth certificate, the child's mother alone may take the call.

If English is not your first language and you feel you may need the help of an interpreter, please ensure someone who can interpret for you is also present during the phone call.

During the call, the registrar will ask you for the following information:

• Your name and address 
• Your occupation
• Where and when you were born
• If you have any other children
• Any previous names or surnames
• The date of your marriage or civil partnership (if this applies)

At your second appointment, we will ask you to check and sign the register page. If the child's parents were married to each other, or in a civil partnership at the time of the child's birth, the parent who gave the information over the phone should attend the Register Office to sign the register page.

If the child's parents were not married to each other, or in a civil partnership at the time of birth, and both parents gave information over the phone, they both must be present at the Register Office and each sign the register page. If the mother alone gave the information over the phone, and no second parent's details were added, she alone should attend to sign.

It’s really useful if you can bring:

• Your passport(s)
• Your driving licence(s)
• A recent utility bill
• Your marriage or civil partnership certificate, if this applies

But don’t worry if you don’t have these documents available, you may still sign the register page without them. 

However it can cost you between £75 and £90 if you need to correct or add any information at a later date. So before you sign the register, please make sure you check all the information carefully.

There are two types of birth certificates:

• a short one which shows only your baby’s name, gender, date and place of birth
• a longer one which also shows information about you as the parent(s)

Unfortunately, you cannot buy birth certificates at your appointment. Instead, you will be able to order certificates online as soon as you have completed your second appointment to sign the register. Birth certificates cost £11.00 each. Find out about ordering a copy of a birth certificate.