Changing the first name of my
child
If you decide to change your child's first name(s) within 12
months of the date of the registration of the birth you can simply
amend the original birth registration.
If the child has been baptised in the Christian faith within the 12
month period after birth registration you can obtain a form from
the register office to take to the Minister of the Church in which
the child was baptised.
Once this form has been completed it needs to be returned to the
register office and the amended names can be inserted into space 17
of the original birth register. This process can be done at any
time after the birth as long as the baptism took place within 12
months of the registration. You can then purchase certified copies
from this amended registration.
The full copy certificate will contain both the original name and
the new name given in baptism. The short version certificate will
only record the child's amended baptismal forename(s).
If the child has not been baptised, the parents can complete a form
at the register office. Once again, this process can be done at any
time after the birth as long as it can be proved that the change of
name took place within 12 months of the birth registration.
Certified copies of the amended registration can then be purchased.
The full copy certificate will contain both the original name and
the new name. The short version certificate will only record the
child's new name.
Changing the surname of my child
If the parents were not married to each other at the time of the
birth and the father did not attend with the mother to register the
baby, it is possible to re-register the birth at any time in the
future to include the father's details and change the surname of
the child. A form is available from the register office that has to
be completed by both parents.
The easiest way for the birth to be re-registered is for both
parents to attend the register office together. However, it is
possible for either parent to make a statutory declaration before a
solicitor or other person able legally to witness an oath,
acknowledging parentage of the child.
It is also possible for either parent to seek a Court Order naming
the father. In any of these cases the birth will be registered
again and certified copies of the re-registered birth can be
purchased from the registrar.
However, if the parents were not married to each other at the time
of the birth and it was decided to give the child the father's
surname, whether or not he attended with the mother, it is not
possible to change the surname in the registration back to that of
the mother.
The only alternative will be to consult a solicitor and make a
statutory declaration or deed poll changing the surname of the
child. This will not change the original birth registration. The
statutory declaration or deed poll document should be attached to
the birth certificate and this will provide evidence that the child
is being brought up with a surname different to that recorded in
the birth registration.
If the parents have married each other since the birth was
registered, the birth should be re-registered to accurately record
the current legal status of the child. A form is available from the
register office that must be signed by both parents.
Either parent can then attend the register office, with the
completed form and a copy of the marriage certificate. The birth
will then be re-registered and the child's surname can be changed
as part of this process. Certified copies of the re-registered
birth can be purchased from the registrar.
Correcting a mistake in the naming of my child at the time of
registration
If you made a mistake in the original birth registration it will be
necessary for the person who registered the birth to prove that an
error exists.
A registration is an historic record that records the details as
they were intended to be on the day that the registration was
completed. The information you will need to provide will depend on
how soon after the birth was registered you realise a mistake has
been made.
If you realise you made an error within a couple of weeks of
registration you should write a letter setting out what the error
is and how it came to be made. This letter should be sent to the
register office who will pass it on to the Registrar General's
office, which authorises all corrections to names.
If there has been a longer time gap between registration and
realising that an error exists, in addition to writing the letter
setting out how the error came to be made, you will need to provide
documentary proof, dated from the earliest infancy of the child,
that you are bringing up the child in a name different to that
recorded in the registration.
This evidence could be in the form of a clinic card, NHS medical
card or bank book. The letter along with the documentary evidence
will then be submitted to the Registrar General's office for
consideration.
More help
For further information please
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