Weddings

Place of worship

Under the provisions of the Places of Worship Registration Act 1855, a congregation may apply for a certified building of worship by applying to the Superintendent Registrar in the district where the venue is situated. This excludes churches or chapels of the Church of England, unless it shares a church building with another religious denomination.

The person who acts as minister, proprietor or trustee at the place of worship has to complete two original copies (photocopies are not accepted) of Form 76 (the form for certifying a place of meeting for religious worship under the Places of Worship Registration Act 1855). The completed form should be sent to the Medway Register Office with a sketch of the floor plan identifying which rooms will be used for worship, an typical weekly timetable showing how the building will be used and a cheque or postal order, made payable to Medway Council covering the statutory fee.

Place of marriage

If the congregation wishes the place of worship to become a place where marriages can take place, it needs to complete Form 78 (certificate and application for the registration of a place of religious worship for the solemnisation of marriages under section 41 of the Marriage Act 1949). This should be dealt with, if possible, together with the original application for a place of worship. However, it can only be requested after the date of certification of the building as a place of worship.

Form 78 requires signatures of 20 separate householders who say that the building is their usual place of worship and that they desire it to be registered for the solemnisation for marriages. A statutory fee is required to be paid by cheque or postal order, made payable to Medway Council.

Once the information is received at the Medway Register Office, the information is sent to the General Register Office (GRO) for authorisation. Once the GRO certifies a building for worship and marriage, the Medway Register Office is required to advertise the new place of worship in the London Gazette and a local newspaper. It then sends the certificate to the applicant, stating it is now a place for worship and marriage together with a letter confirming this.

If the place of worship is in disuse or another minister or proprietor takes over the place of worship, Form 77 (notice of disuse of a certified place of meeting for religious worship to be given to the Registrar General, pursuant to the Places of Worship Registration Act 1855) needs to be completed. The process outlined above for registering a place of worship would have to be conducted again. Re-registration is not required if the existing building is demolished and another is built on the site.

^ (back to top)