Query re Registering Birth & subsequent Death in Hospital ? (General)

by Jefff , West London, Middlesex, Friday, February 10, 2017, 17:36 (2625 days ago) @ selbyfamily

Hi Sheila,
I'm afraid I don't follow Coronation Street, when you say 22 weeks I presume you're referring to still-births ? My quick search on the net suggests that the UK system currently refers to 24 weeks, although I've seen several mentions of 22 weeks on US and Australian forums.
https://www.rcm.org.uk/news-views-and-analysis/analysis/registration-of-stillbirths-and...

This leads me to ask a question I've been puzzling over for a few years, I hope someone on the forum might be able to clarify the procedure of registering births, please ?

My brother-in-law was born at the Dilke Hospital Cinderford in 1950, his birth records are fully available on FreeBMD etc etc.

His parent's told him that he was one of twins, and his twin sister was alive when born, and given a name, yet sadly died some hours later at the hospital, she was born with her cord around her throat. She was then buried within an existing family grave at Lydbrook Churchyard. My brother has searched the graveyard but cannot find any indication of his sister's resting place. This was abt 10 years ago, and after his parents had died, so they cannot add any more information.

Given that his sister was born at a hospital in modern times, I would have expected there to be full records of her birth and death, especially as we understand she was alive when born... not that I know the medical definition of "stillborn". However I'm unable to find any such records online, or a burial record with the PRs. My brother-in-law hasn't yet enquired officially.

I wonder if anyone knows of the procedure for registering a child's birth. I'm certain the hospital would have made their own records. From reading various government websites it seems to be the parent's responsibility for officially registering the birth, whether alive and normal, or a stillbirth. I must admit I'd assumed that in modern NHS times this would be done by the hospital. I guess it's this official registration record that then becomes transcribed onto FreeBMD, GlosBMD etc, and not the hospital's own records or notes. I also don't know whether registration was obligatory, or only if parents wanted ?.
Despite their grief at the time, we think my brother-in-law's parents would have wanted to register their only daughter's brief life, especially as they gave her a name and were adamant she wasn't stillborn, and could have legally done this within the month or so after the event.

I appreciate this maybe a difficult enquiry, and perhaps beyond the scope of this forum, but if anyone can help explain or clarify things then we'd be delighted to know.

Many thanks, Jeff.