Booking your marriage or civil partnership ceremony

• Preliminaries are conducted with the couple separately, so the couple do not see each other before the ceremony
• Use of the enhanced ceremony room which has a central aisle for either one of the couple, or both to enter down together with the person giving them away
• Couple to select their own music for during the ceremony
• Premium ceremonies are held at Priory Place, Doncaster, DN1 1AA. The entrance for ceremonies will be through door 3 which is opposite the old Doncaster Post Office. For more information, please contact us
• Please be aware that animals are not allowed at Priory Place (service animals excluded)
• Only Bio-degradable confetti is allowed in the Great Kitchen courtyard

• Open Mornings are arranged for ceremonies booked at Priory Place for couples to view the ceremony rooms. New bookings are not taken at these open mornings but interested couples who don't yet have a booking, can come to see the rooms. The address is Priory Place, Doncaster, DN1 1AA.  The entrance is through door 3 which is opposite the old Doncaster Post Office

Times will be 10.30am to 12.30pm

 2024 dates... 

12th May

9th June

7th July

4th August

8th September

6th October

3rd November

8th December

• Preliminaries are conducted with the couple together and they enter the ceremony together
• Standard ceremonies are held at the Civic Office, Waterdale, Doncaster, DN1 3BU on Wednesdays only for the couple and strictly 2 witnesses only.
• We offer an upgrade to a standard 'plus' ceremony on a Tuesday afternoon in Priory Suite for up to 30 guests - all other details regarding preliminaries are as the standard ceremony

• A civil ceremony can take place at one of our historic venues or any of these approved premises in Doncaster.

• If you live in Doncaster but are having your ceremony held in another district by their Registrar (either being held in the Register Office or at an Approved Premise), you will still need to give your notice of intending to marry/form civil partnership in Doncaster.
• You will need to book the Registrars to perform and register your marriage at the Register Office in the district where your marriage is taking place.

• A religious ceremony can take place at a Church or Chapel of the Church of England or Church in Wales, or at any other place of worship that has been formally registered for marriages by the Registrar General.
• It is the decision of the religious order governing a church as to whether they participate in same sex marriages. Please consult the minister of the religious building for advice.
• If you wish to be married in any of the Church of England churches in Doncaster, you should first speak to the Vicar. If they are is able to marry you, they will arrange for the marriage announcement (banns) or a common licence to be issued. The marriage will be registered by the Vicar.
• If you wish to marry in any of the other places of religious worship in Doncaster, you should first arrange to see the person who deals with marriages at the place of worship.
• If the place of worship requires a Registrar to attend to register the marriage, please contact us to ensure a Registrar is available. The fee for this is £90 and includes one marriage certificate and is payable 6 weeks prior to the ceremony date.
• It is the responsibility of the person of worship to securely deposit the marriage schedule with the Register Office so that your marriage can be indexed - they are required to do this within 5 days.
• Please contact the Register Office no sooner than 1 week after your ceremony to request copies of your marriage certificate - these cost £11 each plus £2 recorded delivery.

• If you are having your ceremony abroad, different countries have different requirements on the legal documentation that you will need to produce. Please speak to your wedding planner to understand what is needed and then if required, contact us to arrange an appointment.

• You can secure a date as soon as you have decided on a venue, this can be several years in advance, early booking is advisable.
• Please contact us to ensure our ceremony rooms and a Registrar are available on your preferred date for marriage/civil partnership.
• A non-refundable payment of £40.00 is required to provisionally book your chosen date with the Register Office

email us: registrars@doncaster.gov.uk

call us on: 01302 735222

• Notice of your intention to marry/form a civil partnership must be given in person to your local Superintendent Registrar by both parties no later than 29 days before the ceremony is due to take place.
• You must have both lived in the Doncaster registration district for seven clear days immediately before giving notice.
• Please contact us to book this appointment, these appointments are held weekdays only and are very limited.
• The fee for Giving Notice (£35 each) is payable when you book your appointment.
• If you do not attend your appointment without advising us 24 hrs before, or attend with the incorrect documents, there will be a fee of £10 each to pay to re-arrange
• If you live outside the Doncaster district, please contact the Superintendent Registrar that is local to your place of residence.
• Notice can be given no earlier than 12 months prior to your ceremony date and no less than 29 full days before it and we need to know the venue that you are having your ceremony at.
• The authority for Marriage/Civil Partnership is valid for one year and is valid only for the venue that you advised at your appointment.

• Proof of nationality for both parties

• A current valid British passport is preferred.
• Your full UK birth certificate may be acceptable if you do not have a valid British passport.
• Please note, if you were born after 1st January 1983 you will need your full birth certificate (showing parents’ names) and also your mother’s birth certificate to prove your nationality or you can provide your father’s birth certificate with a copy of your parents’ marriage certificate.

• Proof of being legally free to marry for both parties (if applicable)

• If previously married, the original Decree Absolute issued by the court (not a photocopy) or if widowed, your former partner’s death certificate (if you are not named on the certificate we will also need to see a copy of your marriage certificate).
•  If you do not have a copy of your Decree Absolute, you will need to obtain this from the court where your divorce proceedings were heard. If this was Doncaster, the telephone number for Doncaster Magistrate Court to obtain a copy is 01302 366711
• If your divorce took place overseas, this will need to be translated into English.
• A fee of either £50 or £75 will apply for the consideration of a foreign divorce.

• Proof of name change (if applicable) - Any Change of Name documentation
  
  
• Proof of residency/living in Doncaster for both parties. This should be any of the following, 
•  A valid UK driving license for each party or,
• a bank statement for each party (dated within 1 month) or,
• a utility bill for each party or one in joint names (dated within 3 months) or,
• a Council Tax bill in joint names (dated within 1 year)
• a separate items is required for each party ie - we cannot accept Council Tax Bill or Bank Statement in joint names for both

If you do not have any of these documents, please contact us before your appointment to discuss what other documents will be acceptable.
Please be aware that should you attend your Notice of Marriage/CP appointment and not have the correct documents, or not give 1 working days notice to reschedule your appointment, you will be charged a £20 administration fee.

Please see https://www.gov.uk/guidance/new-immigration-system-what-you-need-to-know   

To arrange your Notice of Marriage appointment, please call us on 01302 735222. We will take all of your details for both parties and the £35 each fee for Notice of Marriage. We will then confirm by email within 10 working days an appointment date and the specific information that you both will need to provide. Please be aware that we have a statutory duty to report any marriage we suspect has been arranged for the sole purpose of evading legal immigration controls.                                                                

We are unable to advise on which would be better for you and you do need to have decided before your appointment with us.

The differences between marriages and civil partnerships for same sex and opposite sex couples are outlined on the government website. 

A celebrant is unable to perform a legal marriage ceremony at an approved premise, or any venue. Hence, a ceremony conducted by a celebrant is purely celebratory and has no legal standing. Your legal marriage certificate would not show the date or venue of when or where a celebratory ceremony took place. If you would like your family and friends to witness your actual legal marriage at an approved premise we can help. A few things for you both to think about:

• We are very experienced in working together with couples to provide a totally personalised legal ceremony, tailored as a reflection of you as a couple. We are not the highly formal service that we used to be in years gone by!
• There are many things which we can build into your day such as personal vows and readings by family or friends. We regularly facilitate amazing ceremonies where children play a part or even the family dog, they make great ring bearers!
• We are not a ‘one man band’, our team approach means that we have contingency in place to ensure that no matter what, there is no risk that we won't be there to conduct your marriage ceremony
• We have great relationships with colleagues at all Doncaster approved premises and work in close partnership with them, and your other suppliers, photographers, videographers etc