Buildings of Worship & Marriage

Registering a building of worship, and registering a building of worship to become a place where marriages can take place
Under the provision of the Places of Worship Registration Act 1855, a place of meeting for religious worship may apply to the Registrar General, through the local Superintendent Registrar in the district where the venue is situated, to become a certified building of worship. This excludes churches and chapels of the Church of England, unless it shares a church building with another religious denomination.

Registering a building of worship
The person who acts as ‘Minister’, ‘Proprietor’, or ‘Trustee’ at the place of worship has to complete in duplicate (a carbon or photocopy is not acceptable) of ‘Form 76’, (Form for certifying a place of meeting for religious worship under the Places of Worship Registration Act 1855). Completed ‘Form 76’ should be sent to the Registration office with a plan or sketch drawing of the floor plan, identifying which rooms will be used for worship, an average weekly timetable of how the building will be used (secular and religious activities), and a cheque or postal order made payable to CUMBRIA COUNTY COUNCIL to cover the statutory fee which is currently set at £28.

Registering a building of worship to become a place where marriages can take place
If it is decided that a place of worship is to become a place where marriages can take place, a ‘Form 78’ (Certificate and application for the registration of a place of worship for the solemnization of marriages under section 41 of the marriage act of 1949) needs to be completed. This can be dealt with at the same time as an 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 specify that the building is their usual place of worship and that they desire it to be registered for the solemnization for marriages. The statutory fee is currently set at £120 is payable by a cheque or postal order payable to CUMBRIA COUNTY COUNCIL.
Once the information is received at the Register Office, the information is sent to the General Register Office (GRO) for authorisation. Once the GRO certify a building for worship and marriage, the register office is required to advertise the new place of worship in the local newspaper. The applicant will then receive a certificate and a letter confirming that approval has been granted.
If place of worship is in disuse or another religious denomination 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 completed. The process outlined previously for register a new place of worship will need to be completed again. 
The General Register Office has published a leaflet, which is in a downloadable PDF document, and can be found at: 
http://www.gro.gov.uk/Images/CertRegBuild_tcm69-3545.pdf

Please contact the Superintendent Registrar in appropriate district to request the relevant forms and/or for further information. If you are unsure which Superintendent Registrar to contact, please contact:

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