Jesus said, ‘In the beginning the Creator made them male and female and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one’… Therefore, what God has joined together, let no one separate.”
Matthew 19:4-6

If you have just got engaged, congratulations! We would love to support you and pray with you as you begin this special journey. Click here to see where we are meeting this month, and come along one Sunday and chat with the minister to find out more about getting married in any of our parish churches.

Marriage is a gift from God and a moment of great celebration. It is also a holy and life-changing moment. It is a day to celebrate and a life to be lived, full of hopes, dreams and expectation.

There are a number of legal requirements and provisions for church weddings (a note on ‘qualifying connections’ below), so it’s good to have an idea of those before you speak with the minister.

We recommend having a look at the Church of England’s website, which includes fantastic resources to help you plan Your Church Wedding. You can find everything from legal advice, ideas for hymns, bible readings and more to help your special day be ‘personal, meaningful, spiritual and beautiful’.

Getting Married in a Church Building

To be married in a church building you need a legal ‘qualifying connection’ to the parish. This can be achieved in a number of ways:

You can marry in a Church of England church if you can show that one of you:

• has at any time lived in the parish for a period of at least 6 months, or
• was baptised (christened) in the parish concerned, or
• is confirmed and your confirmation was entered in the register of confirmations for a church or chapel in the parish (this will usually be the case if you were prepared for confirmation in the parish), or
• has at any time regularly gone to normal church services in the parish church for a period of at least 6 months

or

That one of your parents, at any time after you were born:

• has lived in the parish for a period of at least 6 months, or
• has regularly gone to normal church services in the parish church for a period of at least 6 months

or

That one of your parents or grandparents:

• was married in the parish

We look forward to hearing from you!