The purpose of these pages is to provide you with the information you need to prepare for your marriage at St Michael’s, and ensure that the service itself will run smoothly. Obviously, every wedding is different and there may be things not mentioned here that you want to ask about. Please feel free to contact us regarding any of the arrangements for your wedding. The details of who to contact are given in the relevant section.

CAN WE GET MARRIED AT ST MICHAEL’S?
The law states that you can only be married in St Michael’s church (or any other church for that matter) if you qualify under one of the following headings:

1. One (or both) of you is resident in the parish, or has been resident in the past for at least six months.
2. A parent is resident in the parish, or has been in the past for at least six months during your lifetime.
3. One of you is on the church electoral roll, or has worshipped here in the past for at least six months.
4. One of you was Baptised or prepared for Confirmation at St Michael’s.
5. A parent or grandparent was married here.

If you do not qualify under any of the above, it is likely that the only way for us to host your wedding is for one or both of you to attend church over a period of at least six months so that you can apply to have your name(s) on St Michael’s Electoral Roll and thereby qualify under number 3 above. (Please note that these are not our rules - it is the law of the land!)

ABOUT ST MICHAEL’S
The ancient parish church of St Michael, Aughton is a beautiful building with a well kept churchyard, and a perfect setting for your wedding service. However, St Michael’s is not just a building, it is also home to a thriving Church community. If you are not a regular worshipper at St Michael’s, you would be very welcome to join us at any of our Sunday services so that you can become familiar both with the building and with the people who will be involved in your wedding. Sunday services are at 8.15 am (old style service), 10.30 am (modern style service, and it is at 10.15 am on the first Sunday of each month) and 6.30 pm (old style again). Details can be found on the home page (click 'welcome' above left).

BOOKING YOUR WEDDING
If you have not already done so, we recommend you book a date and time as soon as possible. Please check with us to make sure your preferred date and time is available, and please note we do not accept bookings for Sundays. You can make enquiries by telephone, but please regard a booking as provisional until we have confirmed the date and time to you in writing (which we will only do after we have received a completed application form).

Unforeseen Circumstances - sometimes circumstances change and it may be necessary to alter the time or the date of your wedding, or even to postpone or cancel. Please let us known immediately, preferably in writing, of any proposed change. The sooner we know the more likely we are to be able to accommodate the change.

Some people choose to be married on a day other than Saturday. We can offer any day of the week (except Sunday), but you may wish to bear in mind that we cannot guarantee to provide bell ringers or a choir on week days. Please see the relevant sections below for more information about the bells and the choir.

MEETING THE CLERGY
In doing the above you may or may not speak to a member of the clergy, but you will need to make arrangements to see the minister who will conduct your wedding around four to six months beforehand to discuss the details of your service. You will probably meet him/her two or threee times in all, including a rehearsal a few days before the wedding.

BANNS OF MARRIAGE
Before you can be married at in any church, there is a legal requirement that Banns of Marriage are called both in the parish in which you are to be married (in this case St Michael’s), and in the parish in which each of you resides. If you both live within St Michael’s parish, you will not need to make any other arrangements.

However, if one of you lives outside the parish you will need to contact the Minister of that parish and arrange for banns to be called there. You should do this three to four months before the wedding. When the banns have been read in this other parish, they will issue a certificate which you must collect and bring to the St Michael’s before the wedding can take place. You will be charged a small statutory fee by that church.

If one or both of you are members of St Michael’s church (which for the purpose of banns means that your names are on the Church Electoral Roll) but live in different parishes outside St Michael’s boundaries, you will need to contact the Ministers of both the parishes to arrange for banns to be read as above.

If both of you live outside the parish and you are not members of St Michael’s church, it may not be possible for you to be married at St Michael’s. This is not because we do not want to host your wedding, it is because the law does not permit it (except under special circumstances which will be explained to you if this is relevant). If you are not sure if you meet the conditions, or want to know how to become members of St Michael’s church, we will be pleased to discuss this with you.

Please note:

• Banns are a legal requirement and a wedding cannot take place without the banns certificate from the other parish. This is not our rule, it is the law – therefore we are not at liberty to allow exceptions.
• Banns must be called in the Anglican (Church of England) Parish Church even if you are a member of another Church or denomination.

MARRIAGE BY LICENCE
If you do not or cannot have your banns called (e.g. one of you lives in Scotland where banns are not called, or one of you is not a British citizen) you will need to obtain a Common Licence. This will involve you in a little extra administration, including attendance at the Diocesan Registrar's (or his appointed Surrogate’s) office.

FLOWERS
Most couples will want to put flowers in Church for their wedding. Please contact our Church Administrator, Mrs Chris Thomson at the Parish Office (Tel 01695 424457), to let her know what you are proposing to do. Arrangements for setting up flowers need to take into account that there may be another wedding taking place on the same day as yours. In this situation it is good to make contact with the other couple, and you might even be able to pool your resources! Access to the church is by arrangement with the Parish Office.

BELLS
St Michael’s has a ring of six bells. If you would like to have the bells rung at your wedding, please let us know in the application form. Please note that we are not always able to provide ringers Monday to Friday as many of the ringers are at work during the week (there is a higher fee on weekdays).

PHOTOGRAPHY & VIDEOS
The taking of photographs and videos by guests is not allowed during the service itself. Your official photographer and video operator (if any) will be informed about photography during the service (i.e. where and when), and they should be asked to see the Verger before the service for this purpose.

Permission is required for any recording (audio or video) made on church premises. A recording may be made only on receipt of the completed Indemnity Form (which sets out the terms under which a video may be made) and the additional fee. Depending on what you intend to record, and what you will do with it afterwards, you may also need a Wedding Video Recording Licence. Details are available at www.videolicence.co.uk where you can also pay for this licence. You are unlikely to need an this licence if you are using a professional video company, but do check with them.

If the weather is very cold or wet on the day of your wedding, you may wish to have the official photographs taken in church rather than outside. Please remember that this can only be for a limited period of time, especially if there is another wedding or event following.

YOUR MARRIAGE SERVICE
Within the marriage service, there are a number of options including, for example, a choice of music, readings, and prayers. The final decision on the content of the service rests with the clergy who conduct the service, so it is important that you discuss your proposals with him/her (and certainly before anything is put into print). He/she will go through the service with you in detail so that you know what the options are.

Click here for the full text of the Church of England's marriage service, including the full text of all recommended bible readings.

It is usually best not to be overly influenced by relatives, but rather to make choices that will allow you to make your lifelong commitments to each other before God and before your family and friends in a way that is comfortable and meaningful for you both.

It is possible for family members and friends, including clergy/ministers from your own church, to be involved in the service (for example, in reading a lesson or leading prayers), but once again, please discuss this with us at the earliest opportunity so that appropriate arrangements can be made.

MUSIC
Please contact the organist, Mr Syd Yeoman after the 10.30 am service (no appointment is necessary). He will advise you on a suitable choice of hymns and other music, including the entrance of the bride, during the signing of the registers, and for the procession at the end of the service. You may, of course, have your own ideas already, but please discuss them with the organist as not every piece that sounds wonderful on a CD can be played on a church organ!

When it comes to hymns, a good starting point is that they should all be well known and easy for your friends and family to sing! There are usually two or three hymns during the service. Most favourite hymns can be used, particularly at the beginning of the service, but those in the middle should be appropriate to the context of a marriage. That is, the words should help us to express something of the love, commitment or dedication that is central to marriage, or the love of God that is at the heart of the Christian message.

Click here for suggested readings and hymns, and links to other useful information.

The choir is usually available, if required, for an extra fee.

PLEASE MAKE SURE YOU HAVE DISCUSSED YOUR MUSIC WITH
THE ORGANIST AND CLERGY BEFORE YOU COMMIT ANYTHING TO PRINT.

PRINTED ORDERS OF SERVICE
Church hymn books are always available, but most couples prefer to have a printed Order of Service for their wedding. An order of service can be very detailed or quite simple; most couples choose to have just the processional music and the hymns printed, others like to have the service printed in full. The clergy will discuss the various options and the layout with you – please make sure you have this discussion before it is printed.

It is also helpful if you are able to include the following statement in the order of service: “Please note that photography is not permitted during the service, and that mobile phones should be switched off. Also, please do no throw confetti within the churchyard (this is to respect families who otherwise spend much time removing confetti from their graves, and can find it upsetting.) ”

MARRIAGE PREPARATION
Your wedding day lasts 24 hours, and you will no doubt put in many days of preparation (sorting out the service, flowers, dresses, catering, guest lists, and so on) to make sure it is successful. Your marriage is for life. We believe that you need to put in preparation time to make sure that your marriage is a successful as your wedding day. We want to give every couple the opportunity to spend some time, thinking about each other and about their future life together. Usually this preparation is done within the meetings you have with the clergy.

THE REHEARSAL
A rehearsal is usually arranged for an evening in the week leading up to the wedding, on a date to suit you and the Rector. Obviously, the presence of the Bride and Groom is essential, and it is certainly very helpful to have the Chief Bridesmaid, the Best Man, and the Bride's Father (or person who will escort her into church). Other bridesmaids, page boys, and at least one of the Ushers, should attend if possible. Others may attend if they wish, but there will not be anything specific for them to do.

THE MARRIAGE CERTIFICATE
What is normally referred to as your ‘marriage certificate’ is, legally speaking, a certified copy of the entry of your marriage in the church’s Marriage Registers. It is important to keep this document safely as a duplicate copy will cost at least £9 (2008 prices). If you need more than one copy on the day of the wedding, please let us know well in advance.

CAR PARKING
St Michaels’ has only a small car park, in front of the Church Hall opposite the church (and if the Hall is in use even this may not be available). This means that most cars have to be parked in the street. Please note that the pub next to the church, the Stanley Arms, does not permit its car park to be used by wedding parties as it needs the spaces for its own customers. We ask that you make your guests aware of this when you send out your invitations or directions.

THE DAY ITSELF
It is important to be relaxed on your wedding day so you can enjoy it. Spend the time before the service getting yourself ready and prepared for the day ahead and let everyone else do the running around and the panicking about the buttonholes and where mum put her new shoes.

Bridegroom - you and your best man should arrive at the church at least half an hour before the start of the service. This allows time for photographs and for checking the marriage registers (a mistake that goes unnoticed is a lot of hassle to correct afterwards!)

Bride – please arrange for the wedding car to get you to church a few minutes before the start of the service so that photographs can be taken without being rushed, and the service still start on time. Our experience is that if you aim to be ready at the church door on time; by the time the photos have be completed and you have had your dress arranged, etc., you will be the customary few minutes late! To arrive late at church means being flustered at a time when you need to be calm and collected, and can be disconcerting to your guests. Even more importantly, it may have a knock on effect on other weddings and events that follow yours. Imagine how you would feel if you had to drive around Aughton for 15 minutes because the previous wedding was not yet clear of the church!

THE HONEYMOON (PASSPORTS)
If you are going abroad for your honeymoon, brides may wish to have their passport changed to their married name. You can do this before you are married provided you get a form from the Passport Office and give it to the clergy who will conduct your wedding to be completed and signed. You will need to do this at least three months before the date of your wedding.