To find out how to adopt
If you are considering adoption please contact the County Council Adoption Team Leaflets about adoption are available at all Libraries across the County.
Obtaining a birth certificate after adoption
When an official Adoption Order is made that entry on the Adopted Childrens Register supersedes any previous birth record entry. Therefore, for the purposes of obtaining official documents such as a passport or driving licence, an adopted person will need to obtain a copy of their entry in the Adopted Childrens Register.
Personal applications can be made at The Family Records Centre, their address is,
1 Myddleton Street,
London,
EC1R 1UW
Tel: 0870 243 7788.
A full certificate from them, containing child and parents details, is £7 and a short copy, containing just the child's details, is £5.50. Certificates are usually posted, or available for collection, after four working days.
Postal applications can be sent to,
The General Register Office,
Smedley Hydro,
Trafalgar Road,
Birkdale,
Southport,
PR8 2HH
Tel: 0870 243 7788.
A full certificate from them, containing child and parents details, is £11.50 and short copy containing just the child's details, is £10. Payment should be made out to "O N S ". Applications are normally processed within 5 working days.
All certificates purchased are Crown Copyright and cannot be photocopied. All fees may be reviewed annually.
Information for adopted people and their relatives
There are several leaflets available from any Register Office which provide information on access to original birth records. The Adoption Contact Register for people adopted in England and Wales and their birth relatives is a non-profit but fee charging service called Traceline. To contact Traceline,
Traceline,
PO Box 106,
Southport,
PR8 2WA,
Tel: 0151 471 4811