An ongoing programme of change is under way to modernise the Registration Service, nationally and in Cambridgeshire. For information on the national modernisation programme, visit the National Modernisation website.

From 1st October 2007, the Cambridgeshire Registration Service introduced two important changes. Firstly, the entire County became a single Registration District, amalgamating the previous four districts of Cambridge, Huntingdon, Fenland and Ely. This means that:

- births and deaths which took place anywhere in Cambridgeshire can be registered in any registration office in the County
- marriage notices for Cambridgeshire residents can be given anywhere in the County

The second change is that Cambridgeshire adopted what is known as “new governance”. This means that the local authority can determine where, when and how registration services are delivered, subject to a national Code of Practice and a Good Practice Guide. A key component of the Good Practice Guide is that customer input has to be regularly gathered and used to determine the most appropriate way to deliver the service locally.

Initially, there will be limited changes in the way the service is delivered. But these changes have established a framework for introducing new and improved customer services, such as on-line appointments booking, more flexible opening hours, a single telephone number available 6 days per week, and new services (such as our current death registration service in Addenbrooke’s hospital).

These changes were introduced after wide consultation with all stakeholders. The links on the right provide a history of the original proposals and the consultation results.