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Births, marriages and deaths – Highland registrars hailed for rising to coronavirus challenges


By Val Sweeney

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Assistant Registrar Gillian Morrison conducts a civil ceremony at Kinlochewe.
Assistant Registrar Gillian Morrison conducts a civil ceremony at Kinlochewe.

Registrars in the Highlands have been praised for maintaining high standards, despite the difficulties caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

As well as a backlog of birth registrations, they had to deal with death registrations during a difficult time for bereaved families and also shared the disappointment caused to couples having to alter wedding or civil partnership plans.

An external assessment by the National Registrars of Scotland (NRS) revealed more than 97 per cent accuracy in their 2019 records, and the 2020 examination is now under way.

Also, the last survey of performance and attitudes from the citizens’ panel showed a 73 per cent net satisfaction rate.

About 6000 life events are usually registered with Highland Council each year.

Early assessments indicate last year’s figure was 5369, which represents a considerable fall.

With birth registration initially suspended following the first lockdown, the backlog reached 400 but this was cleared by September 2020.

Staff were also worried that they would not be able to offer the same service to bereaved families as registration had to be carried out remotely, but feedback has been positive.

People can now register a death from their own home perhaps supported by loved ones, or from anywhere in the country.

Preliminary figures for 2020 show 796 marriages and five civil partnerships were carried out – about half the usual number.

Councillor Allan Henderson, chairman of the communities and place committee, thanked the registrars for responding so well to dealing with the backlog of birth registrations and in dealing with death registrations so sensitively.


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