The birth should be registered in the district in which the birth happened. By law you must register the birth within 42 days. Registration of a birth is free of charge.
If the birth happened in Cumberland
If the birth happened in Cumberland (this was previously Allerdale, Carlisle and Copeland), you can register the birth with Cumberland Registration Service.
If a baby is born in Westmorland and Furness (this was previously Eden, Barrow and South Lakeland) you can register the birth with Westmorland and Furness Registration Service.
If you’re unsure which new Council are you need to contact please use our handy tool to find out.
Alternatively, you can do a declaration of a birth at any other office in England and Wales (remember this now includes if a birth happened in Cumberland and you want to register in an office in Westmorland and Furness or vice versa) but you won’t be given any documents. The details will be passed to us and we will do the registration and issue your certificates at a later date. This can slow down the process. We always recommend that you try to attend an office in the district where the event took place.
If you can't book an appointment online, contact the registration service.
Cumberland Registration service
Email: registration.service@cumberland.gov.uk
Telephone: 0300 373 3730
If the birth happened outside Cumberland but within England or Wales
If the birth happened outside of Cumberland, but within England or Wales, it should be registered in the district in which the birth happened. If you can't go to the district where the birth took place, you can register the birth in any register office in England and Wales on GOV.UK.
The information will then be sent to the district where the birth happened and that register office will enter the information into the birth register. Certificates can be ordered and paid for at a later date by contacting the office where the birth has been entered in the register. The certificates will then be posted to you.
If the birth happened outside England or Wales
If the birth happened outside England and Wales, please contact The General Register Office for advice on 0300 123 1837.