Important note about Ecuador
The standard route described on this page for document legalization for Ecuador does not generally apply. You are reading this because your origin is Newcastle upon Tyne, but Ecuador belongs to a group of countries that do not require the full embassy legalisation chain. What they do accept from the UK is a UK-issued single-step certification, sometimes done by another name. Save money and time by understanding this up front - the full consular steps described in your search results are stories aimed at other destinations. This provision comes from government guidance published by authorities both in the UK and in Ecuador, though the precise rules can shift, and a small subset of non-standard documents may face different rules.
What to do instead for Ecuador
For most papers from the UK, the process of legalize documents for Ecuador runs through the Legalisation Office which is the central UK body for this work. You do not need to arrange embassy attestation for Ecuador - the consulate in London or elsewhere is not part of this path. Getting your paper certified is completed with only the one stamp applied in Milton Keynes. This avoids dealing with the formalities of full consular legalization for Ecuador. When your job involves something like a birth certificate, get a fresh copy from Newcastle Register Office which keeps the original safe, and have that copy certified - not the family's only copy. Their team at the Civic Centre knowns the rules for what gets certified and how.
Newcastle route step by step
When your papers need to cross into Ecuador, the city's local facilities make it straightforward. For civic records like a birth or marriage, go to Newcastle Register Office at the Civic Centre. They print a fresh, official copy stating it is a true record from their books, and that is the paper the Legalisation Office works with. Since the Legalisation Office in Milton Keynes handles the certification by post, you mail everything to them with a return envelope. For embassy legalization for Ecuador from Newcastle upon Tyne, note that no such thing exists - skip every embassy direction you read. The stamp you get from Milton Keynes is the last step; nothing more is done. Keep a record of what you send and via which service, track the delivery, and set up alerts for the return post. Let the office know if you need speed - they quote two to three days for the express tier, seven to ten normally.