Births, deaths and ceremonies Registering a birth

You're able to register a birth in Shropshire at one of our register offices providing your baby was born in Shropshire and not Telford and Wrekin.

The registration process usually takes between 15 and 20 minutes to complete. Please bring your child’s ‘red book’ (personal child health record) with you for the Registrar to see the NHS number.

You may also want to bring identification, which can be useful if you have an unusual spelling of names (but this is not a requirement).

When you attend to register the birth, the Registrar will need to know the following information:

Information about the baby

• The date and place of your baby’s birth. If the birth is a multiple one (twins, triplets etc) then the time of each baby’s birth will also be required
  
• The baby’s sex
  
• The forenames and surname in which it is intended that the baby will be brought up
  

Information about the father/second parent

(Where these details are to be entered in the register)

• The father’s/  second parent forenames and surname
  
• The father’s/ second parent  date and place of birth (town and country if born in the UK; country if born overseas)
  
• The father’s/ second parent  occupation at the time of the baby’s birth or, if he was not employed at that time, the occupation he last followed
• The father’s/ second parent address (if he is not married to the mother and not living at the same address)

Information about the mother

• The mother’s forenames and surname (a maiden surname will also be required if the mother is, or ever has been, married)
  
• The mother’s date and place of birth (town and country if born in the UK; country if born overseas)
  
• The mother’s usual address at the time of birth
  
• The mother’s occupation (if the mother is no longer working but had been employed at any time before the birth this occupation can be entered in the register if the mother so wishes)
  
• The total number of previous children
  
• If the mother was married to the baby’s father at the time of the birth the registrar will need to know the date of that marriage
  

It's most important that the information recorded in the register is correct. If a mistake is made in the register entry, it may not be possible to make a correction later so please spend time double-checking the registration details at the end of the appointment. If a correction is possible, there is a statutory fee of up to £99 per correction depending on the type of correction.

You can also find out further information about the process for same-sex couples.