• A birth certificate gives you details that have been registered in the official register of births. In England and Wales, registering a birth has been a legal requirement since 1st July 1837, although penalties for non-registration were not introduced until 1875. The registration service is run by the General Register Office

• There are two types of birth certificate with different levels of detail:

- a short certificate giving only the child's full name, sex, date and place of birth

- a full certificate giving you a copy of all the details recorded in the register:

the registration district and sub-district that registered the birth;

the child's date and place of birth;

first names;

sex;

father's name and occupation (usually not recorded in the early period if a couple were unmarried);

other's name and maiden name; mother's occupation;

name, address and signature (or mark) of the 'informant' (the person registering the birth);

name of the registrar;

any first name given at baptism after the registration and registered later;

administrative details

• For a detailed guide to the contents of birth certificates and how details have been recorded over the years since 1837, see a useful web site Barbara's Registration Web Page