Liverpool & South West Lancashire FHS - Forum

Found a distant relative who was a widow who had a child with another man in 1926
The child was registered by another female in the mothers married name
but using the fathers surename as a middle name
So my question is would the registrar just accept the facts from the informant

thanks

Jerseygirl

If the child is registered in the father's surname then he would have to be present and agree to this if he wasn't married to the mother.

There is guidance here http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Governmentc ... /DG_175608 and although it might seem more up to date I believe it was basically the same a hundred years and more ago.

Thank you for the reply and the link, Mary

I asked the wrong question in my post, I have edited it

regards

Jerseygirl

From what you have written, there seems to have been no claim by the father, the child was simply given his name as a middle name, just as it could have been given any other.

As far as I am aware only the mother of the child, or someone who was present at the birth, could have registered that birth.

If the child was illegitimate the father's name would not be allowed on the cert unless the father attended the registrar in person after the registration had been recorded and attested that he was the father.

It is possible the informant could give false information about the birth if they were convincing enough.

As you will see from MaryA's link, the rules regarding registration of children born 'out of wedlock' have been relaxed somewhat in more recent times.

Dickiesam

Hi Dickiesam

Thank you for the reply,

regards

Jerseygirl

As I understand this question: Someone other than then mother registered the child. This is possible if the person knew of the birth i.e., was present at the birth and this should be shown on the certificate in the signature column or was a relative which would also be noted in that column.

You can register a child in any name that means it may include the father's surname but that does not prove that this is the actual father.

Only if the father's name is included in the father's name column and is signed by the father (if they are not married) does it prove that that is the father.

I have read the details on the website suggested and they have not be relaxed recently only the parental responsibility right of illegimate fathers have changed. A few years ago illegimate fathers who included their details and signed were granted parental responsibility rights previous to that even if their details were included, it did not give them any parental responsibility rights.