1942 Stillbirth

[zetlander]

Would a certificate have been issued to the parents of a stillborn baby born in 1942?

If the event had to be certified in 1942 are the certificates held locally or/and in the Central Registry?

Could I apply for copy of the certificate - the parents of the child were my uncle and aunt?

Are details - possible cause of stillbirth? - recorded on the certificate and would place of burial be included.   Thanks.

[Glen in Tinsel Kni]

The Births and Deaths Registration Act of 1926 made stillbirths registerable from 1st July 1927, the only regulation prior that date  was within the 1874 requirement for a declaration of stillbirth to be obtained.

There is no index of names of stillbirths (since 1st July 1927) available for researchers, and no copy of the certificate issued on registration of the stillbirth is allowed to be made apart from exceptional circumstances, e.g., medical/genetic. In such cases a copy is available at the discretion of the Registrar General.

[zetlander]

difficult question
- if a baby sadly dies almost immediately after being born is it classed a stillbirth and what if a very premature baby sadly dies soon after being born is that a stillbirth. 
Or are babies who may only live a few minutes registered as Births and then registered as Deaths?

[CaroleW]

If the child is born alive and dies shortly afterwards - how can it be a stillbirth?  If it only lives for 30 seconds - it is a live birth

[Viktoria]

I am pretty sure if a baby has breathed it is a live birth.
Then named a neonatal death.
Only if the baby did not draw breath is it a stillbirth.
Not sure what certificates would be issued.
Viktoria.

[Glen in Tinsel Kni]

Pregnancy beyond 20 weeks and not drawing a spontaneous breath would qualify as a still birth (from 1992 the pregnacy has to go beyond 24 weeks). Any child which draws a spontaneous breath is classed as a live birth and should be registered in the usual way and appear in the bmd index.

[Tickettyboo]

Would a certificate have been issued to the parents of a stillborn baby born in 1942?

If the event had to be certified in 1942 are the certificates held locally or/and in the Central Registry?

Could I apply for copy of the certificate - the parents of the child were my uncle and aunt?

Are details - possible cause of stillbirth? - recorded on the certificate and would place of burial be included.   Thanks.

Though a certificate may not be available ( I am not au fait with regulations about issuing of certificates etc) I do know that 'some' burial registers for cemeteries include those of still born babies.
see this quite recent thread for an example
https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=837679.msg7030657#msg7030657

If you know the area where the still birth may have happened it would be worth a shot looking on Family Search to see if a local cemetery's still births register may be available.

Boo

[iolaus]

The causes are listed if known, but even today 50% of stillbirths are of unknown causes

My personal theory is that whatever causes sudden infant death causes a lot of the unexplained stillbirths

[zetlander]

thanks - it's a complicated area. 
If a baby is born not breathing the medics will immediately get to work to get the baby breathing.
It must be difficult if things go wrong to work out whether the baby had spontaneously breathed or whether it was the efforts of the medics which gave the impression the baby had breathed spontaneously.