Chris

This information taken from the GRO site relating to births in England and Wales:

Births

Registering a birth

After the arrival of a new baby, it is a legal requirement to register the birth within 42 days. This can often be done at hospital before the mother goes home, otherwise it needs a personal visit to a register office.

A birth which takes place in England can only be registered in English, but births in Wales may be registered bilingually in English and Welsh.

Whether or not there is provision for registering at the hospital, you can go to any register office although things will take a day or two longer if you go to one which does not cover the district in which the baby was born. This is because the registrar will need to forward your information to the district where the birth took place in order for the registration to take place and it is from here that the birth certificate will be sent to you. Register office opening hours vary from one district to another and most operate an appointment system.

Hope this is of help
Rob Davis