weddings
Planning to get married? Congratulations!
Please be encouraged that you don’t have to attend Church to get married in a Church. We are delighted that you are ready to make these amazing promises to each other and we would love to be part of this and ask God’s blessing upon you both.
We would also very much like to walk alongside you on this exciting journey towards your wedding day. If you are wishing to marry within our Parish, either at Cockington or St. Matthews, please in the first instance contact our vicar Revd Samantha via the website or our Parish number – 01803 607709. We will then forward Application Forms for completion and establish your qualifying connection to the Parish by meeting and talking with you. There are several different routes by which you may be able to marry with us and we can explore them together.
We will also be able to point you in the right direction for information to help you with the planning process for your special day.
We invite and encourage all couples planning to marry with us to attend a short marriage event, which offers you the opportunity to spend time talking with your partner about your life and relationship. It will cover many aspects of your future life together and this preparation is designed to strengthen and support your marriage in the ups and downs of life in the years to come.
Once the process is complete and your date is secure, we will stay in contact with you up until your wedding day, making sure that we have had an opportunity to look at the marriage service, the vows you will take, as well as answering many of the practical queries you may have about marrying with us in Church. Shortly before your wedding day, there will be a rehearsal in Church to ensure that you can be relaxed and enjoy your big day.
You should allow for at least four months from time of application to your proposed wedding day. It’s important to note that all our marriages are conducted by a member of our Parish Clergy, according to the rites and ceremonies of the Church of England.
If either of you is not a national of the UK or Ireland and doesn’t hold Settled or Pre Settled Status under the EU Settlement Scheme, having a Church of England wedding will involve some different paperwork. However, a member of our Parish Clergy will be able to talk to you about this and advise you on the best way forward. Please do not let this deter you from making your vows in the presence of God. We will again walk with you as you explore the process to marry lawfully within the Church.
Divorced?
In certain circumstances the Church of England allows divorced people to marry again in Church. If you have been divorced and wish to marry again, the first step is to contact one of our Clergy – Revd. Chris or Revd. Paul – and arrange to meet with them to talk things through. They will want to talk openly and frankly with you about the past and your hopes for the future. But please be assured that they will wish to do all that they can to help and advise.
A wedding service contains various elements for which there are charges. Please ask for further details.
Have your banns read
Banns are an ancient legal tradition, whereby an announcement is made in Church of your intention to marry. It offers a chance for anyone to put forward a reason why a marriage may not lawfully take place. But don’t worry, it’s only on very rare occasions that an objection is made!
Banns need to be read in the Parish Church where each of you lives, as well as in the Church where you will be marrying. It’s an easy thing to organise and please speak to us if you are unsure of your Parish Church or how to go about doing this.
In our Parish banns are read in the main Church service on three Sundays, usually consecutively, in the three month period before your wedding day. However, we would happily organise this to coincide with dates when you and your family or friends are able to attend. We would encourage you to attend to hear your banns read on at least one of the Sundays, if possible. It may be a legal formality, but it’s also a special event in your journey towards marriage.
If you are marrying outside of your home Parish, you will be given a certificate to post or show to the Priest who will be officiating at your wedding.