Index
Following the closure in London of both St Catherine's House and the Census Reading Rooms at Chancery Lane, the Office for National Statistics (formerly the OPCS and before that the GRO) and the Public Record Office have come together to establish the new Family Records Centre (FRC) in Myddelton Street, London EC1, only 10 minutes walk from the Society of Genealogists and not to be confused with the Family History Centre(s) of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS).
1 Myddelton Street
London EC1R 1UW
Census & General Enquiries: (tel) 0208 392 5300; (fax) 0208 392 5307
Certificate Enquiries: (tel) 0151 471 4800
PRO Web Site
ONS Web Site
Users will find many innovations and improvements in both the building and the service. The forrner is modern, bright and spacious and the latter "user-friendly" in the best possible sense. For a start, the hours have been extended, with Saturday opening to 17:00 pm and opening on Tuesdays and Thursdays extended from 17:00 to 19:00 pm. The opening hours are generally 09:00 am, but 10:00 on Tuesdays and 09:30 on Saturdays.
Opening Hours
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The FRC is closed on Sundays and Bank Holiday weekends (including Saturdays) |
The two nearest tube stations are
- Angel (on the Northern Line) - walk south down St John Street, taking the second on the right to turn into Myddelton Street. Signs are being erected but it would be wise to carry a map, especially if travelling by bus (Nos 19, 38 or 171A), as these run along Rosebery Avenue at the back of the building
- Farringdon (on the Hammersmith & City, Metropolitan and Circle Lines) - walk, or take the 63 bus, north up Farringdon Road and turn right into Exmouth Market which continues after Rosoman Street as Myddleton Street.
Although there are only a few metered parking places nearby, there is a car park in Skinner Street, just south-east of the Centre, and another a little further away in Bowling Green Lane, off Farringdon Road. For the disabled there is reserved parking at the Centre itself but space must he booked in advance (0171 533 6400). Many of the surrounding streets have only single yellow line parking restrictions.
The Centre, which has a public lift and special facilities for the disabled, is on three floors, if one counts the basement which houses the refreshment area (yes!) and cloakrooms, while the former GRO (ie Civil Registration) indexes and a bookshop are on the ground floor and the PRO censuses and wills an the first. One can now take bags to all parts and there is no objection to the use of pens, even in the PRO section, as no original documents are kept at the Centre.
The GRO part is operated much as before, as is the PRO, so that once they have got used to the bright and spacious surroundings and all the new furniture old hands will soon feel at home. Upstairs one receives the usual pass which allots a seat and a "black box" to access the microfilms. There is a separate area for the wills and nonconformist registers. Innovations are a bank of computers holding the IGI and FamilySearch programs of the LDS and a small library of family history reference books.
For those not familiar with the old Chancery Lane searchroom holdings it is worth mentioning that the register copy wills and administrations on microfilm and their indexes at the FRC are only those proved in the PCC (Prerogative Court of Canterbury) 1383-1858 and those in the Estate Duty Office death duty registers 1796-l858. The indexes for these extend to 1903, but there is at the moment no set of the PPR (Principal Probate Registry) will indexes from 1858 up to recent years at the FRC. The latter are available in microform up to 1935 at the Society of Genealogists and a score of local record offices.
PRO Record Classes available on microfilm at the Family Records Centre:
- HO 10 - 1841 and 1851 Census returns
- RG 9 - 1861 Census returns
- RG 10 - 1871 Census returns
- RG 11 - 1881 Census returns
- RG 12 - 1891 Census returns
- IR 26 - Estate Duty Office, death duty registers, 1796-1858
- IR 27 - Estate Duty Office, indexes to death duty registers, 1796-1903
- PROB 6 - Prerogative Court of Canterbury, act books, administrations, 1559-1858
- PROB 11 - Prerogative Court of Canterbury, registered copy wills, 1384-1858
- PROB 12 - Prerogative Court of Canterbury, indexes of wills and administrations, paper copies, 1383-1858
- RG 4 - Non parochial registers, 1567-1858
- RG 43 - Miscellaneous foreign returns of births, marriages and deaths: indexes 1627-1960
The post 1858 Death Duty Office registers themselves - over 5,000 volumes - are stored at the PRO's Hayes repository and can be produced to readers at Kew at three days' notice.
There are no plans at the moment for the PPR office at Somerset House to join the GRO and the PRO at the FRC. In any case, its records have been moved to Companies House in City Road and only postal or Fax searches can be made.
It is worth noting that there is a copy of the index to the Miscellaneous Foreign Returns of Births, Marriages and Deaths 1627-1960 (PRO Ref RG 43) at the FRC. There is also access via a computer link to the Scottish GRO at Edinburgh, where electronic processing is now in an advanced state. In London, post 1984 indexes have already been captured into a computer readable form and the aim is to have these available at the FRC within the next year. There are difficulties in relation to handwriting and poor typography in the computerisation of the earlier indexes, but ways are being explored of tackling these.
Valid from 1 January 2005
Standard Applications [Family Records Centre, London]
Applicants who visit the FRC and apply in person may collect their certificate(s) on the fourth working day after the application was made or have it posted on the fourth working day to any address supplied:
| Full certificate of birth, marriage, death or adoption | £7.00 |
| Short (abbreviated) certificate of birth | £7.00 |
| Short (abbreviated) certificate of adoption | £5.50 |
Please note that for applications made at the FRC an administrative charge of £3.00 (£19.00 if priority service selected) will be retained if (a) the GRO index reference quoted is incorrect or (b) the details and checking points quoted do not correspond to the entry. In both these cases, a certificate will not be produced. The administrative charge relating to all certificates remains unchanged.
Priority Applications (24 hour service excluding weekends and Bank Holidays) [Family Records Centre, London]
| Full certificate of birth, marriage, death or adoption
A priority service is available at an additional cost of £16 (£7 + £16 = £23). These certificates can be collected on the working day following the day of application. |
£23.00 |
| Short (abbreviated) certificate of birth | £23.00 |
| Short (abbreviated) certificate of adoption | £21.50 |
Standard Postal Applications [Southport]
Postal applications should be addressed to:
PO Box 2
Southport
Merseyside PR8 2JD
(tel) 0845 603 7788
(fax) 01704 550013
Order Online at the General Register Office
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Online / Postal / Phone / Fax Fees for events in England and Wales |
|
| Full certificate of birth, marriage, death
or adoption The £11.50 fee includes a 3-year search of the GRO indexes for the entry required. GRO staff will carry out this search. If you are unsure of the date of the event, then further blocks of 3 years can searched for an additional fee of £3 per block. If you would like GRO staff to carry out the search on your behalf you should specify the years to be searched. These certificates will be despatched within 10-15 working days of receipt of your application. |
£11.50 |
| Full certificate of birth, marriage, death
or adoption (with GRO
index reference supplied) ordered by post, phone or fax
To qualify for a certificate at the reduced fee you must state the GRO index reference. The index to the birth, marriage and death records of England and Wales may be searched at the Family Records Centre and at a number of public libraries, Family History Societies and other similar organisations. If an incorred GRO index reference is supplied an administration fee of £4.50 will be charged. Additional references relating to the same application can be checked for £3 each. These certificates will be despatched within 5 working days from receipt of your application. |
£8.50 |
| Full certificate of birth, marriage, death or adoption (with GRO reference supplied) ordered online via the internet | £7.00 |
| Short (abbreviated) certificate of birth | £11.50 |
| Short (abbreviated) certificate of birth (with GRO reference supplied) | £8.50 |
| Short (abbreviated) certificate of adoption | £10.00 |
| Short (abbreviated) certificate of adoption (with GRO reference supplied) | £7.00 |
If ordering by post, phone or fax, make cheques and postal orders payable to 'ONS'. Payment from abroad should be by international money order, cheque or draft (payable in London) in favour of 'ONS' and should always be expressed in sterling. If you are applying by post, do not send cash. Payment can also be made by Visa, Access, Mastercard or Switch. If applying at the Family Records Centre (FRC) you may also pay by cash. Information on applying for adoption certificates is available on 0151 471 4830.
Priority Postal Applications [Southport]
A priority postal service is available and orders can be placed by telephone on 0845 603 7788 or fax on 01704 550013 quoting credit card details (8am to 8pm Monday to Friday, 9am to 4pm Saturday). Calls are charged at the cost of a local call. Applications can also be made by post.
| Full certificate of birth, marriage, death
oradoption These certificates will be despatched on the next working day following receipt of your application (provided the order has been taken before 4pm). If you are applying by post for a priority application mark the outside of your envelope "PRIORITY". |
£27.50 |
| Full certificate of birth, marriage, death
or adoption with GRO
index reference supplied if ordered by by post, phone or
fax A priority application service, quoting the GRO index reference, is available at an additional cost of £16 (£8 + £16 = £24). These certificates will be despatched on the next working day following receipt of your application. If you are applying by post for a priority application mark the outside of your envelope "PRIORITY". |
£24.50 |
|
Full certificate of birth, marriage, death or adoption (with GRO index supplied) if ordered online |
£23.00 |
| Short (abbreviated) certificate of birth | £27.50 |
| Short (abbreviated) certificate of birth (with GRO index supplied) | £24.50 |
| Short (abbreviated) certificate of adoption | £26.00 |
| Short (abbreviated) certificate of adoption (with GRO reference supplied) | £23.00 |