Rotherham Council celebrates National Registrars Day

Wedding Rings on a branch
Wedding Rings on a branch

On Friday 1 July 2022, as part of National Registrars Day, Rotherham Council is shining the spotlight on one of its most important services.

Local registrars are responsible for collecting and registering details of all births, still births, deaths, marriages, and civil partnerships occurring within the borough. Based at Riverside House, there is currently a Superintendent Registrar, Additional Superintendent Registrar, Registrar of Births and Deaths, and a further 22 Registration Officers.

This year also marks 185 years of Civil Registration across England and Wales, recording details of all the life events that have occurred across the borough since the first day of registration on 1st July 1837.

Ashleigh Wilford, Superintendent Registrar at Rotherham Council, said: “Registrars work behind the scenes to support residents during their major life milestones. We are there to help and support people during the happiest and saddest times during their lives, and for many people, they will come into contact with a registrar at least once during their lifetime. Most people will know the Register Office as the place where people get married, but the service also produces birth and death certificates, but we also register civil partnerships and conduct citizenship ceremonies.

“The role of a registrar has remained similar to when they were introduced in 1837. When registrars first started they would record everything by hand using special ink in the registers. Now-a-days we use computers to input information which makes it a lot easier for us to search for and collate information if we need it, however, we still use the special Registrar’s ink to sign all register entries. The historical records we hold are fascinating. It’s unbelievable to read a document in someone’s handwriting and realise you’re doing a slightly more modernised version of what was being done over a hundred and eighty years ago.”

Over the years, the registrars have recorded hundreds of thousands of birth, death, marriage and civil partnerships, with many of the historical records being helpful to many local historians and family tree researchers over the years. In the last year alone, there have been 6,350 events recorded, including:

  • Birth Registrations: 2,653
  • Marriages: 819
  • Civil Partnerships: 6
  • Death Registrations: 2,872
  • Notices of Marriage: 2,234
  • Notices of Civil Partnership: 22
  • Total Certificates Produced: 17,813

Like many of the Council’s services, the Registration Service was affected severely by the Covid-19 pandemic. During this time the team managed excess death registrations and helped to re-arrange hundreds of ceremonies owing to multiple changes to the laws and regulations governing marriages and civil partnerships However, the service is now working hard to return to pre-pandemic ways of working, ‘business as usual’.

Ashleigh said: “The Covid-19 Pandemic was a difficult time for many services in the Council, as well as for residents who sadly lost loved ones, or had to re-arrange their special day – on some occasions repeatedly. I’d like to express my gratitude to all our service users for their patience and their understanding during those challenging and difficult times, and as we return to normality.”

Rotherham Council’s Cabinet Member for Corporate Services, Community Safety and Finance, Cllr Saghir Alam, said: “It is great that we recognise the hard work that the Registration Service does to make sure all our residents get the documentation and services they need. They are a hugely hardworking and empathic team, and I’d like to thank them for their continued dedication and support.”

Further information about the registration services available

Published: 1st July 2022