Still born child

[stephen7]

 assuming that the stillbirth was registered, my wife had a stillbirth in 1980, ( in wales) and neither my wife or i registered it, nor were we ever told that we had to, unless the hospital did so automatically, ( though i would assume it would have to be one of the parents)them in this case, it was never registered, so it may well have happened elswhere

[Guy Etchells]

Very interesting thread. During a recent seach I have found my great grandmother had a set of twins that I had never heard of and on looking for a death certificate both show up as being aged 0. This was in 1926- so would they have been stillborn then if they show on a death certificate or would I need to obtain the death certificate to show this?

If there are death certificates (assuming you mean certified copies of entries in the deaths register) they were live births.

A still-birth has no birth certificate and no death certificate.
Cheers
Guy

[Lesley123]

Guy,
yes there are birth and death certificates for both but as mentioned I 'assumed' they were still born. Im only new to this but defintaely have the bug already. Lots of information on this site  to help us newbies though.

[stephen7]

Im only new to this but defintaely have the bug already.

thats the end of life as you know it now............................. ask the rest of us.     

[Lesley123]

I know lol My partners already started to comment lol

[Valda]

Hi Stephen


From 1927 onwards the stillbirth would legally need to have been registered for the necessary procedures for the child's body to be buried or cremated.

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Parents/HavingABaby/Givingbirth/DG_171268

The information illustrates how hospital procedures should have changed in the intervening 30 years and how parents now are involved and informed

'Stillbirth
Stillbirth is when a pregnancy has carried to 24 weeks but the baby dies before it is born. Reasons for a stillbirth are complex and not always understood.
The hours and days after the death of a baby may leave you feeling overwhelmed and shocked. You will have a number of choices and decisions to make after the birth, and your baby will need to be registered. Bereavement counsellors at the hospital will be able to guide you about what to do next.'


Regards

Valda

[Guy Etchells]

Sorry Valda but you are a few years out the Births and Deaths Registration Act, 1874 required -

"18. A person shall not wilfully bury or procure to be buried the body of any deceased child as if it were still-born.
A person who has control over or ordinarily buries bodies in any burial ground shall not permit to be buried in such burial ground the body of any deceased child as if it were still-born, and shall not permit to be buried or bury in such burial ground any still-born child before there is delivered to him either,-
(a.) A written certificate that such child was not born alive, signed by a registered medical practitioner who was in attendance at the birth or has examined the body of such child ; or
(b.) A declaration signed by some person who would, if the child had been born alive, have been required by this Act to give information concerning the birth, to the effect that no registered medical practitioner was present at the birth, or that his certificate cannot be obtained, and that the child was not born alive ; or
(c.) If there has been an inquest, an order of the coroner.
Any person who acts in contravention of this section shall be liable to a penalty not exceeding ten pounds."

Cheers
Guy

[stephen7]

it looks like the hospital/doctor at the time must have registered the stillbirth, though how they would have been able to provide all the relevant details regarding my wife or i is a bit of a mystery

[Valda]

Hi Guy

I did deliberately state (as it was a stillbirth in 1980)

'From 1927 onwards the stillbirth would legally need to have been registered' as in registered as a stillborn in the civil registration system.

I didn't presume there wouldn't be procedures before that otherwise you could have all the issues around children being deliberately smoothered etc and passed off as stillbirths. If anything the legislation was quite late considering the number of women who were regularly accused and tried just at the Old Bailey alone for infanticide and concealing births.


Stephen you could of course apply to the GRO for the stillbirth certificate if you wished to pursue it.

My understanding of stillbirth certificates is that cause of death was only added from 1960 and that babies were not allowed to be named until 1983? I'm not sure what other information was needed other than date and place, but it certainly surely should have been the names of the parents.



Regards

Valda