Portadown birth

[Floss]

I'm trying to find my great grandfathers birth certificate but am unsure what to do next.
My great grandparents were married in Portadown in 1885 (have marriage certificate) in the Roman Catholic Chapel.  John McIlduff, my g grandfather, gives his age as 20.  The family moved to Scotland about 1892 and I've picked them up on the 1901 census.  John gives his age as 37.  Making his birth sometime between 1864/65
I applied for a search and certificate at the GRO in Belfast but have just received a letter saying that they can find no record of a birth between the dates I requested (search 2 years either side).  They say the birth may not have been registered so where do I go from here?
Any advice appreciated
Fiona

[smd.far]

I had exactly the same problem when searching for my mother in law.I had the exact date of birth and did'nt know where to go next as they said she may not have been registered only baptised,but i could'nt get that either.I had a local researcher look for me and it turned out she had been born in the workhouse and was illegitimate and then adopted.None of the family knew about it,but i never would have found it myself as her surname on registration had obviously been different to what i was searching for.The researcher got her birth in the workhouse for me and also on the census her adoptive father had put her down as adopted so i was really lucky.Just a thought for you and if you need any further help please don't hesitate to ask.Suzanne

[Matty47]

Hi Suzanne,

You mentioned in your reply that you had a local researcher look for you.  Would you mind sending me the contact details of the researcher?

Many thanks in advance - Matty.