|
Wedding Ceremony Information.
WEDDING CEREMONIES AND WEDDING RECEPTIONS.
You are very welcome to book Westbourne Grove for your Wedding Reception, for a Wedding Ceremony, or for both events.
COST OF CEREMONY AND RECEPTION.
A reception at Westbourne Grove Church is charged at our usual event hire rates.
A wedding ceremony at the church can be booked into one of the party booking periods, or for cost saving a shorter time within a booking period can be used, at £100/hour at weekends, and £75/hour weekdays.
You are welcome to conduct a wedding ceremony and then continue with a reception. This is a popular option and the changeover can be accomplished in less than an hour with an efficient team of table movers and setters. Meanwhile guests can move to the lobby, mezzanine and front pavement. For larger numbers the small hall upstairs can be booked for extra capacity during the changeover.
You can decorate the hall for ceremonies and reception. The usual event instructions will apply. You will need to book sufficient time for your setup and clearup. There will be additional charges for the setup time.
LEGAL WEDDINGS.
In order to be legally married at Westbourne Grove Church there are a number of things which must be done.
1) WEDDING MINISTER: Arrangement must be made with the Westbourne Grove Church ministers to conduct the ceremony, or agreement from the Westminster registrars for another minister to do so.
2) REGISTRAR AVAILABLE? Check Westminster registrar available for item 4.
3) LICENCE: Bride and Groom must obtain a licence to marry at Westbourne Grove Church.
4) BOOK REGISTRAR: Book Westminster registrar to attend the ceremony and issue the Marriage Certificate.
5) FORM OF WORDS: The correct words for a legal marriage must be included in the ceremony.
NOTES ON THE FIVE POINTS:
1) WEDDING MINISTER:
Westbourne Grove Church is a registered venue for religious marriage ceremonies. If you would like to be married at Westbourne Grove Church by one of our ministers, we are happy to help. In return we ask you to meet with one of our pastoral staff (usually the minister who will conduct the marriage) for a short series of meetings to help you to prepare for the commitment of marriage. The meetings focus on the practicalities of married life: how decisions will be made, how work and leisure are divided, finance and resources used; the meetings are intended to be an enjoyable way of exploring how well you know each other and your expectations, hopes and worries. They build a relationship with the church where you will be married, and add to the special significance of the wedding day. The meetings can include spiritual direction but the faith elements are optional. As this is a church marriage ceremony it will be conducted as a Christian service, “in the presence of God”, but also taking into account your preferences for content.
Ministers from other churches are welcome to conduct marriage ceremonies in our building subject to prior approval by our ministers. Please provide some information about your congregation in writing or by providing a website link together with brief details about the ceremony and who will conduct it. If you wish the ceremony to also be a legal wedding you will need to obtain the approval of Westminster registrars. You can contact them at www.westminster.gov.uk/registrar/ We understand that some church ministers have made arrangements allowing them to conduct legal marriages at other church buildings, but as we have not yet seen this take place you must ensure you have the approval of Westminster registrars and we will need them to confirm the arrangment to us. To avoid this complication many couples opt for a separate registry office wedding for their legal marriage, in addition to the religious marriage ceremony taking place at our church. This removes any legal restriction on the content of the church ceremony as it does not have to meet registrars’ legal requirements.
2) REGISTRAR AVAILABLE?
A legal wedding requires a Westminster registrar to be available. Check this before confirming the date with venue and ministers, and obtaining the licence.
3) LICENCE TO MARRY:
You can be legally married in the church if:
One of you is resident in Westminster or Kensington and Chelsea, or, you name Westbourne Grove Church as your regular place of worship, or, you wish to be married at an independant Christian church and there is not a suitable church in your registration district. The legal rules are rather old-fashioned and we have not yet had a case of a registrar objecting to our church being chosen as a marriage venue regardless of where the couple live. You can book your wedding date with the registrar up to 12 months ahead and must give at least 3 weeks notice. For more information:
http://www.westminster.gov.uk/registrar/marriage/
For a legal marriage ceremony the bride and groom each need to obtain a licence to marry from the registrar where they live, naming Westbourne Grove Church and the date of the marriage. The licence is required in order to book the Westminster registrar to attend your service. (Check that a Westminster registrar is available to attend first - see 4).
4) BOOK REGISTRAR:
The Westminster registrar will attend the ceremony, ensure the correct legal words are used, conduct the signing of the register and issue the marriage certificate. You must make the booking with the registrar, and they will charge a fee for the service. The registrar service is very busy especially on Saturdays in the summer, and you should check the registrar and minister are available before you book the venue, to ensure your wedding can take place on the day you wish. The registrar will only be able to attend for a limited period, so from the start of the service to the signing of the register will be a period limited to an hour or hour and a half if they allow. Once the legal marriage and signing of the register is completed, the registrar can leave and rest of the service can continue for as long as you wish.
5) FORM OF WORDS:
One of the forms of legal declaratory words must be spoken by the couple. For example:
"I declare that I know of no legal reason why I (your full name) may not be joined in marriage to (your partners full name)" and
"I (your full name) take you (your partners full name) to be my wedded husband/wife"
See http://www.westminster.gov.uk/registrar/marriage/ for more information.
|
