Book an appointment to register a birth
View addresses and opening hours for our registry offices.
You must book an appointment in advance, as there is no public admittance to the register office without an appointment.
Book an appointment
Other ways to book
You can also book by phone on 0300 300 8089.
If you need more information, please email life.events@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk.
Buying certificates
Certificates cost £12.50 each and you can request them online after the birth has been registered.
Find out how to request certificates online.
Who needs to be at the registration?
Please note: You don't need to bring your baby with you.
If the parents were married or in a civil partnership at the time of the birth, either the mother or father can register the baby.
If the parents were not married or in a civil partnership at the time of the birth, the father's details can only be entered in the register in the following circumstances:
- where the mother and father attend together before the registrar to register the birth
- where the father is unable to attend with the mother, it is possible for him to make a legal declaration in front of a solicitor confirming that he is the father (copies of this form can be obtained from any registrar in England or Wales), which the mother should give to the registrar
- where the mother is unable to attend the office with the father, it is possible for her to make a legal declaration, confirming the name of the father (copies of this form can be obtained from any registrar in England or Wales), which the father should give to the registrar
- where either parent has obtained a relevant court order this should be given to the registrar who will advise you further
From September 2009, under the provisions of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008, a baby of a female partnership may now be registered. If you wish to register a birth under these circumstances, please contact us.
For further information please email us at: life.events@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk.
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Registering a birth elsewhere in England and Wales
If the birth did not occur in Central Bedfordshire, or Bedford, but you live in this area, you can give the information to one of our registrars who will send the details to the registrar in the district where the birth occurred. Our registrar will not be able to issue you with a certificate, as this is the responsibility of the registrar to whom the information is being sent, but will be able to give you details of how to apply for a certificate once the birth is registered.