You can have a civil marriage or civil partnership at any registration office or any venue approved by the local authority. These include stately homes and other prestigious buildings, country houses, hotels and restaurants and, in Cambridgeshire, several colleges. If you wish to have your ceremony outside, you must chose an approved venue that has approval for an outside structure.
Legislation introduced in December 2011 also allows for civil partnership registration in religious buildings, provided the room (s) have been licenced for the purpose by the local authority.
At present, the law does not allow marriage elsewhere, but one option is to marry at your local registration office and then have a renewal of vows ceremony at a venue of your choice.
Our Ceremony Guide will give you further information.
How do I book?
Decide where you wish to marry or hold your civil partnership. If this is at a registration office, contact us to book the date, time and place. If you choose an approved venue, please ensure you have provisionally booked with them, before contacting us to book a Registrar to attend.
If booking for anytime in the next 12 months, your booking will be held for one month to give you time to complete the legal preliminaries, known as 'giving notice'. If booking more than 12 months in advance you will be told what date you must do so by, as a notice can only be given 12 months in advance.
Giving notice must be done in person by appointment at the registration office local to where you live. You can look up the district in which you live using the council finder. If you live in a different place to where you wish to have your ceremony, you will need to contact the local registration office for a notice appointment, in addition to contacting the office performing your ceremony.
For detailed information, including advice for non-EEA citizens, please look at the leaflet below giving information on marriage and civil partnership in the UK.
Corrections to marriage certificates
If you discover an error in your marriage certificate, please read the guidance notes below and, if applicable, complete the form and send it with supporting documentaion to the registration office who issued the certificate.
Contacting us
For notices or ceremonies in the City of Cambridge or South Cambridgeshire areas dial the contact number on the right and select option 2 or email cityceremonies@cambridgeshire.gov.uk.
For notices or ceremonies in Ely, Fenland or Huntingdonshire areas dial the contact number on the right and select option 3 or email countyceremonies@cambridgeshire.gov.uk.