What About Weddings?
In England, if you have your wedding in an Anglican church (ie. Church of England) or in a church which is registered to conduct weddings without a Registrar present the minister or vicar acts on behalf of the state and can take you through the whole marriage ceremony. But if you have your wedding in a church which isn’t registered a Registrar from the local council has to be responsible for the legal side of getting married. So although Richmond Park Church is registered as a "building of worship" where marriages can take place, a Registrar from Bournemouth Council has to be present to make sure the couple are asked the required questions as part of the ceremony, before our pastor can lead the blessing of a marriage.
Sometimes a couple choose to have the Registrar come to the church to have both these parts in one service; alternatively, a couple could get married at the Registry Office, or somewhere else entirely, and then have a separate wedding blessing service at the church itself.
See also the DirectGov website for official information on marriages
and Bournemouth Borough Council Registrar information.
If you have any more questions please email us.
Richmond Park Church, 139 Palmerston Road, Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset BH1 4HP
tel: 01202 399448 - email: rpcbournemouth @ gmail.com - www.richmondparkchurch.org.uk
