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                  Registration of vital events

                  On the introduction of civil registration in 1855, parochial boards and town councils were required to appoint local registrars, although initially local session clerks acted as local registrars.[1] The country was divided into registration districts, usually with boundaries matching the existing parishes. Registration was compulsory and free; with payments to the registrar coming from local assessments. Central government appointed a Registrar General, provided a central office and within a year of operation also appointed district examiners to inspect the registers which were kept in duplicate, one copy deposited in Edinburgh and one copy held locally.

                  The appointment of local registrars has remained a local authority function with responsibilities transferring at every local government reorganisation to the local authority in whose area each registration district was situated.[2] In 1973 regional and islands councils were given this responsibility and this was transferred to the successor unitary authority in 1994.[3]

                  Local registrars became responsible for additional tasks and functions at different times. From 1861, they supervised the census in their districts.[4] From 1864 to 1948, they had to note on birth entries when a child was vaccinated.[5] In 1866 they were required to make returns of epidemic diseases in their districts and at other times they were required to inform various government departments of the deaths of pensioners and to notify medical bodies of the deaths of practitioners.[6] From 1878 a notice of intended marriage could be posted outside the registrar’s office, instead of the proclamation of banns in churches and after 1977 this notice completely replaced banns.[7] From 1 July 1940, they were authorised to perform civil marriages as well as register them and from 2002 they were authorised to perform civil marriages in any approved place rather than only in the registration office.[8] From 2004 they were authorised to perform same-sex civil partnerships and from 2014 same-sex marriages.[9] Mixed-sex civil partnerships were authorised from June 2021.[10] From 2003 registrars also officiated at citizenship ceremonies but in their capacity as local authority employees, rather than specifically as registrars.[11]

                  Registration records are held by National Records of Scotland and can be accessed through the ScotlandsPeople website <https://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk/> [accessed 24 April 2024] or by visiting National Records of Scotland or designated local family history centres with access to the registration records.

                  Compilers: Rod Burns (NRS, 2021), Elspeth Reid (2021), SCAN contributors (2000)

                  Bibliography

                  Cameron, Anne, ‘The fate of the Old Parish Registers under the Registration Act of 1854’ Scottish Archives, 14 (2008) pp. 62-72

                  Cameron, Anne, ‘The establishment of civil registration in Scotland’ The Historical Journal, 50 (2) (June 2007) pp. 377-95

                  Kyd, James G., ‘Registration’ in Source book and history of administrative law in Scotland ed. by M. R. McLarty (Hodge, 1956) pp. 64-73

                  Sinclair, Cecil, Jock Tamson’s bairns: a history of the records of the General Register Office for Scotland (HMSO, 2000)

                   

                  References

                  [1] Registration of Births, Deaths and Marriages (Scotland) Act, 1854 (17 & 18 Vict. c.80).

                  [2] Registration of Births, Deaths and Marriages (Scotland) Act 1965 (c.49) ss.5-7.

                  [3] Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 (c.65) s.167; Local Government etc (Scotland) Act 1994 (c.39) s.51

                  [4] Census (Scotland) Act 1860 (33 & 34 Vict. c.108).

                  [5] Vaccination (Scotland) Act 1863 (17 & 18 Vict. c.108); National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1947 (10 & 11 Geo. VI c.27) s.26(5).

                  [6] Cecil Sinclair, Jock Tamson’s bairns (HMSO, 2000) p.49.

                  [7] Marriage Notice (Scotland) Act 1878 (41 & 42. c.43); Marriage (Scotland) Act 1977 (c.15).

                  [8] Marriage (Scotland) Act 1939 (2 & 3 Geo. VI c.34); Marriage (Scotland) Act 2002 (asp 8).

                  [9] Civil Partnership Act 2004 (c.33); Marriage and Civil Partnership (Scotland) Act 2014 (asp 5).

                  [10] Civil Partnership (Scotland) Act 2020 (asp 15).

                  [11] Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002 (c.41) Sch.1.