Registering a still birth

Every still birth in England or Wales must be registered in the district in which it takes place within 42 days of the event. You can name baby in the register when you attend this appointment.

When a child is still born, the doctor or midwife will issue a medical certificate of still birth. The person who registers the still-birth must take this certificate to the registrar when they attend the appointment to register.

A still born child is legally defined as a child born after the 24th week of pregnancy who did not at any time after being born breathe or show any other signs of life.

A child who breathed or showed signs of life is considered live born for registration purposes, irrespective of number of week’s duration of pregnancy or how long baby lived for.

You must book an appointment to register a still birth please telephone 01482 300 300 to make an appointment or email  register.office@hullcc.gov.uk. 

The appointment will take around 20 minutes.

The registrar will be able to provide you with copies of the certificate of registration at a cost of £11 each.

If it is not convenient for you to register the still-birth in at our office in Hull, you may prefer to make a declaration of the still birth at your local register office in another district.  The registrar from this district will record the details in the form of a declaration and send it to our office for us to complete the registration. This option may delay the issue of a certificate for the burial or cremation for your child and therefore may delay the funeral. Please contact us if you are considering this option.

Who can register a stillbirth

If the parents of the child were married to each other at the time of the stillbirth either parent may attend and sign the register.

If the parents were not married to each other at the time of the still birth, mother can attend but information about the father may only be entered in the register if -

• the father also attends with mother to sign the register together or
• if the father cannot attend the mother must provide a signed declaration from the father acknowledging parentage

If mother cannot attend and the parents aren’t married, the father can attend but he must provide a signed declaration from the mother acknowledging parentage.

If information about the father is not recorded it may be possible for the birth to be re-registered to include his details at a later date.

If neither parent can register the stillbirth, please contact us and we will arrange for the registration to be completed by-

• the occupier of the house or hospital where the child was born
• a person who was present at the birth
• a person who is responsible for the still born child
• the person who found the still born child (where the date and place of the stillbirth are unknown)

Please contact us for more information.

Information required at registration

Information about the mother

• forename(s) and surname
• maiden surname if the mother is, or has been, married
• date and place of birth
• occupation at the time of the still birth or, if not employed, her previous occupation
• usual address at the date of the still birth
• date of marriage, if married to the child's father at the time of the still birth
• number of previous children by the present husband and by any former husband

Information about the father (if this information is to be entered)

• forename(s) and surname
• date and place of birth
• occupation at the time of the still birth or, if not employed, his previous occupation

Information about the child

• forename(s) and surname, if the parents wish to name the child
• date and place of still birth
• gender of the child

Please make sure all the information you give when registering is correct.  The registrar enters the details you provide on to the computer and prints the register page. You are asked to check the information carefully before you sign the page. The register page that you sign is a legal document and when signing it you are agreeing it to be an accurate record. It is very important to check your registration thoroughly before you sign it. A fee of up to £90 is applied to corrections or changes that are requested after registration