St. Mary’s is set in a tranquil spot on the edge of the village among the rolling fields of Dorset. It is an ancient place that has presided over weddings for nearly a thousand years.
If you choose to get married at St Mary’s then we want to prepare you as a couple for life together in marriage and for the day itself. We begin to do this through our wedding preparation afternoons. These run during the spring in the church and are a chance for you to chat to one another about various aspects of your life as a couple, and also to chat with one of our weddings team about the big day itself.
Getting married in a Church of England Church is dependent on certain legal qualifying criteria, if you have a connection with the village or attend our St Mary’s services, that is a great place to start!
The Church of England has a comprehensive page dealing with Weddings, this is agreat place to begin investigating as it covers, among others things, – legal requirements, order of service, hymns, bible readings, and so on. You can find it here:
Most couples get married ‘by Banns’ a process of reading the names of the betrothed each week for 3 weeks in Church in the month or so prior to the wedding ceremony, however if you need a special license of any sort then we will walk through the process together. Through the wedding process we will need to see proof of your identity and UK citizenship (non UK citizens may need to be married by special or common license).
Please do not book any post-ceremony venues or invite any guests until you have contacted us – either Stephen our Vicar or Riette our Administrator, discussed dates and had a booking confirmed. We cannot guarantee any date discussed until a booking deposit has been received. Please contact us by using the contact details on the Contact page
Remarrying after Divorce
The Church honours marriage as a life-long commitment two people make to one-another, but we also recognise that divorce can be a fact of modern life and that we serve a God that loves to bring renewal into our lives. In some cases divorcees may marry at St. Mary’s, if they fulfil the legal criteria and at the discretion of the vicar. However they must talk this through with the Vicar who will need to see the Certificate of Divorce Absolute and may need to discuss some of the details of your previous married relationship.
Wedding Blessings.
At St. Mary’s we also offer the blessing of a marriage as an opportunity to celebrate in Church following a service at the Registry Office.
Renewal of Wedding Vows.
Often these are requested at times of a significant anniversary. Also this can be a time of renewal in a marriage, or as a reaffirmation to each other of the promises of your wedding day.
Current Wedding Fees.
Wedding fees are set annually by the Church of England, we do have some additional extras that we can offer. These are all detailed on our 2023 fees list accessible below, or get in touch for the latest details.
If you have any questions at all about the information on this page please contact Stephen our Vicar for a chat, or our Administrator Riette – see Contact page for details.