Marrying in church is personal, meaningful, and spiritual, just as you want it to be. Our beautiful Church and our personal approach makes getting married in St Marys’ a wonderful choice.
Getting Married in the Tetbury Benefice
We are delighted to welcome you to one of our churches for your marriage service. Weddings are normally taken by the Rector, our Curate or a retired clergyperson from the benefice.
Marriage Matters
It is important that you prepare carefully, for both the service and for your life together. Between booking your wedding date and the day itself we would like to invite you to find just one day to spend thinking about the future of your marriage. Even if you have been together some time, from experience we know that this day of reflection will give you some tools and strategies that will help you build a strong and lasting relationship. Our course, entitled “Marriage Matters” helps couples to talk freely between themselves, in private, about their future relationship together. The focus is upon a range of topics which we know from experience can cause problems and resentment.
Who Can Be Married Here?
The rules governing in which church a person may marry were changed nationally in 2008/2009 and again locally in 2012. They are complex but the following gives general guidance. If there is a query, it should be referred to the clergy before any arrangements are made.
The Tetbury Benefice consists of four separate parishes – Tetbury, Long Newnton, Shipton Moyne and Beverston. You may marry in one of these parish churches if:
- One or both of you lives within the ecclesiastical parish boundary, or
- You or both of you are on the church electoral roll of that parish church, or
- One or both of you have, at any time, lived within that parish for a period of at least 6 months, or
- One or both of you were baptised in that parish, or
- One or both of you were prepared for confirmation in the benefice, or
- One or both of you have at any time regularly gone to normal church services in that parish church for a period of at least 6 months, or
- One of your parents, at any time after you were born:
- Has lived in that parish for a period of at least 6 months.
- Has regularly gone to normal church services that parish church for a period of at least 6 months, or
- One of your parents or grandparents was married in that parish.
These rules do not allow qualification in one of the parishes to authorize a wedding in any of the others, except that those who qualify to be married by the first of the above (i.e. one or both of you lives within a parish) may choose which of the four parish churches you wish to married in. One would normally choose one’s own parish church but there may be good reason to prefer another. It is not possible to use the redundant church, St Saviours, Tetbury.
Those who have been previously married, and have a previous spouse or civil partner still alive, have no automatic right to a church wedding but all such cases will be reviewed considerately by one of clergy before a decision is made as to whether it will be allowed.
For more information on getting married at any of the churches within the Tetbury Benefice, including arrangements for reading banns, please download this document:
Fees
The cost of a wedding in church depends on your choices. Some of the charges are fixed by law for every wedding, others are optional. Fees vary from year to year as The Church Commissioners set the statutory fees with effect from 1st January each year, and the PCC also sets local fees from 1st January each year. The following documents provide information about the fees at the churches within the Tetbury Benefice:
Statutory Fees:
Additional Fees for the Tetbury Benefice:
If you require any further information, please contact the parish office or email weddings@tetburychurch.co.uk
