Wedding Reform Background
Why the need for Wedding Reform? The law commission in England and Wales on the 19th July 2022 outlined recommendations to reform weddings law. It proposes a fairer system that gives couples more choice over where and how their wedding takes place. The current law has failed to keep pace with modern life determining how and where marriages take place. Currently couples have to make a choice (for a legal ceremony) between a religious or a civil ceremony meaning a choice of licensed or religious venue, or a register office. Their wedding then consists of a highly scripted ceremony, a lack of personal choice and strict archaic rules. Including strict days and times, length of ceremony and content (generally no pets!)
Many of today’s couples prefer freedom of choice for their wedding and the recommendations reflect this including:
- A much wider variety of wedding locations, including; outside, in a place unconnected to any buildings, such as a forest, a beach, or an unlicensed location of personal meaning, eg marquee on your lawn.
- Celebrants will become licensed, being able to conduct ‘legal ceremonies’ without the faff for couples of having to ‘register’ before or after the ceremony for legalisation.
How you can help the Wedding Reform
Contact your local MP and ask the question “The proposals were released almost a year ago. The review was commissioned 5 years ago. So when will the Government act?
Conclusion – Wedding Reform – watch this space
All in all, the new laws will offer greater freedoms to couples while preserving the dignity of the wedding ceremony. Having the choice of a bespoke ceremony delivered by a qualified Celebrant, with no extra fee or time required to legalise the wedding, I am sure will be a much preferred option.
Hopefully the Government’s response should be out by 2024. Watch this space for more wedding law updates!
For further information see https://instagram.com/gccmovement?igshid=MzRIODBiNWFIZA==