Burial and Death Records in the UK

A full death certificate will give you more information about the family, including the date and place of birth or age, which can allow you to trace your ancestors back another generation, as well as finding a birth record for the deceased.

Information in a Full Death Certificate

A full death record will give you:

• Name
• Date and place of death
• Date and place of birth (before 1969 a certificate only showed the age of the deceased)
• Occupation
• Abode
• Cause of death
• The person who gave the information for the death registration

Ordering a Death Certificate

Certificates in England or Wales can be ordered online through the GRO (General Register Office). To order a certificate, simply follow the instructions on the GRO website, supplying the necessary data and a GRO Index reference.

The full reference is usually a volume and page reference or an 'entry number' for later records, given with the year, quarter and district. Events from the last 50 years will require you to supply more information at application stage.

To find the volume and page reference, you can go to BMDindex.co.uk and look up the references you need to be able to order a death certificate.