Civil birth registration has barely changed since its early Victorian introduction, but is increasingly under challenge from changing family forms, its failure to reflect people’s subjective identity, and exclusion of significant groups. As a compulsory state procedure, birth registration must be fit for purpose and its success depends on the co-operation of the populace. It is therefore important to address these challenges and to think about inclusive ways to reform the birth registration system and its role in contemporary society.
This empirically informed socio-legal project will explore areas where the birth registration system is falling short. By engaging with Registrars, users and those excluded, the research will identify ways to improve the birth registration system. It will explore what this system registers – an event, a person, legal relationships? what it should register; and what birth registration means for different demographic groups.
The first phase of the research will involve cataloguing and analysing legal and other challenges to the birth registration system.