Copy birth certificates and historical searches

We can help if you wish to trace a birth registered in Lambeth from 1837 to the present day, and if you want to purchase a copy certificate.

How to apply for a copy certificate

If you wish to obtain a copy certificate for a birth that was registered in Lambeth you can apply by post or in person.

If you visit us we will give you an application form and help you fill it in or you can contact us and we will send you one by post.

By telephone

Call 020 7926 9420. Staff at our Service Centre will take your name and contact number and then a member of the register office will call you back.

By post

If you are applying by post, please send us the following:

• 1) Details of the person's full name at birth, exact place of birth including the sub district if applicable, exact date of birth and parents name including mother’s maiden name.
  
  2) If you do not have the exact details or if you have found a reference from other sources i.e. the Vol / page details, it is suggested that you submit your application to The General Register Office where the records are held of births, marriages and deaths registered in England and Wales since 1 July 1837.
  
  Index reference numbers held up to 1993 at this register office are specific to this office and do not relate to the GRO indexes found on the internet or on microfiche copies held by many public bodies.
  
  Undertaking a search without the exact details can take some time to locate, if the event took place in Lambeth.
• Cheque or postal order payable to London Borough of Lambeth. Please send a stamped addressed envelope (preferably A5 envelope) together with your cheque or postal order.
  
  Important: The Lambeth Register Office will take every care to post your certificate on time. Unfortunately we cannot be responsible for correspondence handled by the Royal Mail.

Fee

For fees, please go to the Statutory fees page.

Visit the registering a birth page for the difference between a full birth certificate and a short birth certificate.

How long will it take?

A one day turnaround service is offered to all customers who apply in person. When applications are submitted in person, certificates will be available for collection after 11am the following working day.

Customers can post all of the details required to produce a copy of the certificate to Lambeth Register Office along with a cheque or postal order made payable to ‘London Borough of Lambeth’. A stamped self-addressed envelope should be included.

The register office aims to deal with the post within 3 to 5 working days.

The office is open between 9am and 4pm Monday to Friday, except on the first Wednesday of each month. Options for payment are cash, cheques and all major credit cards except American Express.

For historical searches please see below.

For postal applications, we will log your form on the day it arrives and aim to issue the certificate within two working days.

If we can't issue a certificate

We won't be able to issue a copy certificate if we don't hold the record you're looking for or can't trace it from the information you provide.

If you applied by post we will aim to write and let you know within 3 to 5 working days.

If we don't hold the record, we'll let you know which Register Office does.

Historical searches

Superintendent Registrars do not have the staff to undertake searches of an indefinite or protracted nature.

If you do not have the exact details or you have found a reference from other sources, for example the volume number/page details, it is suggested that you submit your application to birth certificate service from the General Register Office.

Usually a search in the birth index, covering a period not exceeding five years, will be made but only where accurate details have been given of the birth registration.

If a wider search is required it is necessary for the applicant or someone on his/her behalf to make a general search in the indexes.

For further information contact the Superintendent Registrar.