Your Wedding in one of the Weald way Churches:

If you are reading this, then it may well be that you are considering getting married at St. Thomas à Becket Framfield, East Hoathly or Chiddingly. If that is the case, all of us here will do our best to help you plan for your big day. This section of the site contains some useful information and practical considerations that should help you as you start to make plans!

Can anyone be married in our churches?

Marriage in church is governed by a mixture of church and state laws, and there are a number of criteria that will need to be met before you can be legally married in church. This might sound a bit negative and daunting, but it’s not as bad as it sounds! Sadly same gender marriages can not yet be celebrated in Church of England churches.

To be married here, one or both of you must be resident in one of our three parishes, or be named on the Church Electoral Roll. (This is not the same as the civil electoral roll). The Church Electoral Roll is only open to regular worshipers at the church. If there are exceptional personal or other reasons, it is possible to be married in any church by ‘Archbishop’s or Special Licence.’ Please get in touch if you think this might apply to you.

What if I or my Partner have been married before?

Don’t worry! The Christian faith is all about forgiveness, and being given a second chance in life. If you or your partner have been married before, contact Fr. James and he will be happy to talk things through with you, and should be able to put your wedding in the diary!

Practicalities & Fees:

Assuming that there are no legal reasons preventing a church wedding you will want to get in touch with us sooner rather than later, to discuss things further and arrange a date. Churches, as with all marriage venues get booked very quickly and often several years in advance, so try not to leave things to the last minute. Also please try and resist booking your reception before you have spoken to the church!

The cost of a church wedding is not as prohibitive as you might think. For example the total fees for 2024 including all legal and church fees, Organist, Bell ringers and the use of the church, comes to well under £900, a small fraction of the cost of the average wedding when reception venues, photographers and honeymoons are taken into account.

Getting to know us:

A church wedding is very special, in that your marriage is not only celebrated in the presence of your family and friends, but more importantly, in the presence of God. The people at your chosen church will want to wish you well for your wedding and keep you in their prayers, and it would be good if we all got to know you a bit before the wedding. Our main Sunday services are welcoming and friendly and we would love to have you with us. In choosing to celebrate your marriage in church, you are asking God to bless your marriage, and as such it makes sense to make a commitment to attending church services, and perhaps exploring your Christian faith. Please do speak anyone here if you have any questions. Children of all ages are very welcome at all of our churches.

What next?

Get in touch with us via our contacts page and hopefully we can put your important day in the church diary.