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Congratulations on your engagement and thank you for considering Leigh Road Baptist Church for your forthcoming marriage.

This information is designed to assist you with your wedding plans, and we hope that you will find it helpful in your in your preparations over the coming weeks.

Please read the entire page as some of the details required by the Church or people involved in your wedding, are for legal purposes.

Preparation for your marriage

Preparation for your marriage

We take Marriage at Leigh Road very seriously and invite all those to be married at the church to meet with one of the ministers over a period of weeks leading up to the wedding date. During these meetings we shall be working through material in a booklet entitled Getting ready for Marriage. In addition to considering the practicalities of the day, we shall also think about such topics as "the purpose and expectations of marriage, the principles of Christian marriage, pressures on marriage today, and much more. We have found that couples have appreciated and enjoyed this preparation for the most momentous event of their lives, and we hope you will too.

At this stage you will need to be aware of some practical and legal matters concerning weddings at Leigh Road:

Legal matters

You will need to attend your local Register Office (the Civic centre on Victoria Avenue is the one for this locality). If one party is living elsewhere you will need to visit your local office there as well. Your intention to marry must be registered no more than one year and no less than 3 (three) weeks prior to the date of the wedding. The earlier you can get this dealt with the better. You will need to take with you both of your birth certificates (and any Decree Nisi if one or both parties have been married previously) and be prepared to pay the prescribed fee.

The certificate must then be collected from the Registrars office not less than 21 days after you have registered, and then delivered (at least 2 weeks before marriage) to our Authorised Person for Marriages, together with the details mentioned later on.

To plan with the Church Minister

When you meet with the minister you will need to plan at least the following;

You will of course need to confirm a date and time of the ceremony.

He will require both of your full names.

He will ask if you have chosen a best man, bridesmaids, organised ushers and chosen witnesses for the signing of the register. The two witnesses need to be over 18 and British Citizens. The register is normally signed in the church as part of the ceremony.

You will need to arrange a day and a time for a rehearsal (usually in the week before the wedding).

The minister will help you to plan an Order of Service. You will need to think about the music, hymns, readings and so on that you might wish to include as well as any relatives or friends that you may want to take part (perhaps reading or with prayers). You will also need to consider if you want to produce a printed order of service.

The church has a well maintained organ, keyboard and facilities for a worship group. There is also a PA system, and a video projector system. Whilst we will do everything we can to accommodate your wishes for your ceremony, please bear in mind that this equipment requires specialist operators and so will be dependent upon particular volunteers being available for your date. The suggested scale of charges gives an indication of the costs of these facilities.

The minister will also speak to you in the first instance about other practical matters:

Flowers

Floral decoration of the Church is your responsibility, so you will need to consider access to the Church, number of arrangements, cost of flowers, who will arrange them and when etc.
However the church does have a number of talented people who maybe able to take on this responsibility if desired. The minister can put you in touch with the relevant person. Should you require this service this will need to be done at least 2 months before the wedding. Please see the current scale of charges to work out the cost of this.

At least one arrangement should be left in the Church for the Sunday Service.

Reception

The Church has several halls and the Stables facility which may be hired for wedding receptions. Arrangement need to be discussed with the Facilities Manager via the church office.

You are asked to arrange your own catering, etc. and are responsible for the tidying up of the rooms used and disposal of all rubbish afterwards.

You will be reminded to organise your own:

After the ceremony

The church garden may be available for photographs. This will need to be booked for your use.

Biodegradable confetti may be used

Fees

We may be able to offer:

There will be separate fees payable should you require any of the premises for your reception.

Cheques should be made payable to "Leigh Road Baptist Church" and given to the minister or forwarded to the Financial Administrator in the church office, 2 weeks prior to the wedding.

If you have any queries regarding any of the information please contact either the Minister, or Authorised Person and you will be steered in the right direction.

Details we will need

We will notify you of the name of the Authorised Person dealing with your wedding when the date has been agreed.

Please notify the following information to the Authorised Person as early as possible, but no later than 2 weeks before the wedding:

Full names of both respective fathers and details of their occupations, whether retired or not (even if deceased, if so, please state).

Whether any changes have occurred since the blue certificates of authority were issued by the Register Office, such as a change of address, or if either party has had a birthday since registration and before the date of the ceremony – if so their correct age on the wedding day. The Authorised Person will want to verify details with the Groom just before the ceremony. If the couple are unknown to Authorised Person photo identification will be required e.g. Passport or full driving license.

The time of the wedding ceremony.

The full names of the two witnesses chosen. (The spelling helps in deciphering signatures at a later date for the quarterly returns).

If more than one copy of the marriage certificate is required for any reason (at an extra charge). One, plus one extra should suffice and will be produced on the day. However due to time constraints additional copies will follow at a later date.

Finally, please note that the Groom is always required to sign first. The Bride must sign in the name by which she registered at the Register Office (i.e. usually her Maiden name, or in the case of second marriages it may be her last married name).

We are here to help!

We hope that the above is helpful to you. The minister will, of course, go through these practicalities as part of the preparation for your marriage at LRBC. You will be in the prayers of the church community as you prepare for your special day and your new life together.

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