About the
Ceremony

More details about the day itself

A marriage ceremony requires two Registrars in attendance, one acting as the Celebrant who will conduct your marriage ceremony and take you through the spoken declarations and your vows. Don’t worry, you won’t need to remember them – the Registrar will say them, and you just need to repeat them back.

For a civil partnership, you are not legally required to make a declaration or spoken vows. If you wish, you may choose to have a ceremony where you will be able to exchange personal promises to each other.

The other Registrar will be responsible for the signing of the marriage schedule or civil partnership document. You and your partner will sign the document, followed by your witnesses and finally the two Registrars.

Arrival and Meeting the Registrar

On the day of your ceremony you will both need to be interviewed immediately before your ceremony by the Registrar to check that the personal information recorded on your schedule is correct and accurate. This is the document you will sign during the ceremony, and the Registrar will be at the venue around 30 to 45 minutes before it begins.

You can choose to be interviewed together or separately – just indicate your preference when you return the ceremony choices information to us beforehand. The first person needs to arrive 20 to 30 minutes before the ceremony, and the second 10 to 15 minutes before.

It is extremely important that you and your guests arrive in plenty of time for the ceremony, as your Registrars will likely have other ceremonies to attend on the same day, which means we can’t delay the start of yours. Please make sure you allow enough time to get ready and arrive at the venue, including any time for photography you need prior to your ceremony.

TraditionalEnhanced
Book appointment with registrar to discuss/assist with ceremony-Optional
Interview with the registrar on the day of your ceremonyCompulsoryCompulsory
Registrar announces start of ceremonyIncludedIncluded
Welcome and introduction by the registrarIncludedIncluded
Entrance - you may enter together or separately.
If you wish a person of your choice can accompany you down the aisle.
Your choice of music played on our digital music system or the venue’s agreed systemOption to include live music
Giving AwayOptionalOptional
ReadingOptionalOptional
Declaratory vows - choose from 3 optionsCompulsoryCompulsory
Contracting vows - choose from 3 optionsCompulsoryCompulsory
PromisesOptional
Choose from our selection provided
Optional
Choose from our selection or write your own personal promise
Exchanging of ringsOptional
Standard accompanying words
Optional
Choose from a selection of words
Sand Ceremony or Joining of Hands ceremony-Option to include one of these options
Closing remarks by the registrarIncludedIncluded
Signing of the marriage schedule or civil partnership documentCompulsory
Your song choice will be played
Compulsory
Your song/live music to be played
Registrar’s final words and well wishesIncludedIncluded
Exit - followed by your guestsYour exit song to be playedYour exit song/live music to be played
Witnesses

Witnesses

The law requires that you have at least two other people to witness your ceremony and they need to be seated close to the front, where they can see what’s happening and clearly hear the words spoken throughout the ceremony. Afterwards, they will also need to sign and print their name on the document.

Your witnesses can be friends, relatives or colleagues who understand English and understand what’s taking place before them.

Number of Guests

Number of Guests

If you invite family and friends to your celebration, each ceremony room will be licensed for a particular number of guests which must not be exceeded as part of the fire regulations and licence conditions.

Need an Interpreter?

It is vital that you both as a couple fully understand the content of your ceremony and the legal statements you will be making. Any language barriers may have been noted when you completed your legal preliminaries (notices of marriage or civil partnership) and you will have been asked to provide an interpreter if the Registrars felt either one of you would not fully understand the words spoken in the ceremony.

An interpreter can be one of your guests – one party to the ceremony cannot interpret for the other. The person acting as interpreter will be asked to repeat the words being spoken in your own language, although your responses must be in English.

Still got questions?

If you’re not sure about anything and would like to speak to the Ceremony Support Team, we’re always on hand to help. You’ll also find our wedding planner timeline useful to plan your ceremony – it covers everything you need to do and when.

Contact our team