Residents urged to have their say on the future of their local registrars service

Shropshire residents across the county are being asked to have their say on proposals for changes to their local registrars service.

The six-week consultation, launched today (Tuesday 12 May 2015), is part of Shropshire Council’s ongoing plans to redesign its face-to-face services to ensure they meet local needs in a more sustainable and cost-effective way.

With changes introduced over the last few years, such as certificate ordering online and over the phone, a reduction in staff resources, as well as the ability to register at any office in Shropshire, together with future plans to use technology to enable ceremonies to be booked and managed online, the opportunity has presented itself to further redesign the service and further reduce costs in line with the austerity measures being experienced across public services.

There are currently 11 locations in the Shropshire Council area where registrars offer a variety of services ranging from birth and death registrations, to marriage and civil ceremonies and nationality checking.

To ensure these services continue to meet the needs of local people, but are based where there is the greatest demand, Shropshire Council’s registrars service want to ask people about the following proposals:-

• Bishop’s Castle – either close the office, or run an appointment-only service
• Bridgnorth – increase in appointments, if other nearby offices have to close
• Church Stretton – closure of office
• Ludlow – reduce the opening hours
• Market Drayton – increase opening hours to 13.5 per week
• Oswestry – increase opening hours to create a full-time service
• Shrewsbury – remain the same
• Wem – close the office
• Whitchurch – increase opening hours to 13.5 per week.

The consultation asks residents:

• If they agree with the proposals for their local area?
• How do they currently access services and how will the proposals affect them?
• If they have any alternative proposals?

Karen Calder, Shropshire Council’s Cabinet member for health, said:

“Registrars services play a vital role at key points in people’s lives, and we want to ensure they continue to serve and meet the needs of local communities in a more sustainable and cost-effective way.

“The low usage of some of our registrars offices, combined with a reduction in staff resources and future plans to use technology to enable ceremonies to be booked online, gives us an opportunity to look at how we can rationalise and reshape these services to better serve our local communities and further reduce costs.

“I would encourage everyone to get involved in the consultation; your views will help inform and shape the way in which, and where, the registrars services will be delivered in the future.”

For further information and to take part in the survey visit shropshire.gov.uk/get-involved and look for Registrars Consultation.

Closing date for feedback is Friday 26 June 2015.

Further information

The consultation features three sets of options, Option 1, Option 2 and Option 3 – the proposals mentioned relate to Option 2.

Shropshire’s registrars services offers the following services

• Birth registrations
• Death registrations
• Still birth registrations
• Marriage registrations
• Civil Partnership registrations
• Notices of marriage
• Notices of civil partnerships
• Historical certificates
• Funeral, naming and reaffirmation of vows ceremonies
• Naming ceremonies
• Reaffirmation of vows ceremonies
• British citizenship
• Nationality checking