On Air Now Martin Emery 11:00am - 3:00pm
Now Playing Beyoncé Texas Hold 'Em

Register Office closure concerns in Glossop

The Municipal Buildings in Glossop.

Work at Glossop's Municipal Building has seen the Register Office temporarily close, but calls are being made by the local clergy for a temporary facility to be provided until it can reopen. 

Currently anyone needing to meet a Registrar in person - they're responsible for the registration of births, marriages, and deaths - now has to travel from Glossop to Buxton. 

Revd Dr David Mundy, Priest-in-Charge at Glossop Parish Church of All Saints, and colleagues from different churches have contacted Derbyshire County Council, which operate the county’s Register Office, to raise the issue. 

“What makes is particularly difficult for the registration of marriages conducted in local churches in Glossopdale is the law changes in May this year.” said Revd Dr Mundy. 

Couples no longer sign a marriage register and are not given a Marriage Certificate during the ceremony. Instead, they sign a marriage document that needs to go the Register Office.  

These can be sent by post but if this document goes astray couples face the challenge of getting the witnesses back to sign again, a problem is they have far to travel. 

The lack of a Register Office also affects registering births because they have to be registered in person. 

“Even with a car, the journey from Glossop to Buxton is time consuming; for anyone with their own transport, the journey by public transport is even more time consuming,” said Revd Dr Mundy.  

“With a population exceeding 30,000 it could be argued that the County Council is not providing a reasonable service to Glossopdale.” 

Derbyshire County Council said they had contacted High Peak Borough Council to ask the Register Office to temporarily relocate for six months to allow for essential works to be carried out. Alternative venues were suggested but unfortunately were either unsuitable or not available. 

A DCC spokesperson said: “We plan to reopen the office as soon as the renovation works are completed and we are able to return to the building, and we await confirmation from High Peak Borough Council as to when this might be." 

The spokesperson said a limited service via phone and email is available and residents can also attend at any other Derbyshire Registration Office  

“We do apologise for any inconvenience this is causing but are doing our very best to maintain a good level of service," they went on. 

“We have received and do acknowledge the concerns received from some church and chapel representatives regarding the change in the law regarding marriage schedules.  

“These can be sent through the post without any issue but at the present time cannot be handed in at the Glossop office.” 

The spokesperson stated that later this month it is expected that appointments will be offered at the office they have within New Mills Town Hall. 

They continued: “Appointments to register deaths have been unaffected by the closure of the Glossop office. 

“With regards to registering births, the majority of babies born to Glossop residents are born in hospitals in either Tameside or Stockport, so parents are advised that they can register and receive their baby’s birth certificate at the offices in the districts where their babies were born. 

“Even if the Glossop office was open, if they were to attend an appointment there, a birth certificate could not be issued because legally the paperwork must be sent to the office in the district where the birth took place for the birth to be registered. Only then can a birth certificate be issued and posted to the parents.” 

📰 Sign up to our newsletter 📰

Want to get regular round-ups of news in your local area straight to your inbox? Simply enter your email address and tick the box below. 

Newsletter

Read more from the Glossop Chronicle

Click here for more of the latest news

Click here to read the latest edition of the paper online

Click here to find out where you can pick up a copy of the paper

More from Glossop Chronicle

Weather

  • Thu

    9°C

  • Fri

    12°C

  • Sat

    13°C

  • Sun

    14°C

  • Mon

    11°C