Church of England should scrap fees of up to £641 for weddings, vicar says: ‘It should be a free gift’
by Aine Fox, Independent:
The Reverend Tom Woolford described marriage fees as being ‘like a poll tax’, ahead of a vote on the matter at the General Synod.
The Church of England is wrong to charge for weddings and should scrap fees, a vicar has said ahead of a vote on the issue next week.
Charging couples hundreds of pounds is a “major contributor to the decline in church weddings”, according to the Reverend Tom Woolford, who will put a motion before the church’s parliament on Tuesday.
The vicar of New Longton, near Preston in Lancashire, described marriage fees as being “like a poll tax”, ahead of the vote at the General Synod.
People who marry in a church in their home parish must pay a maximum of £539, or £641 if they marry away from where they live, according to Church of England fees for 2023.
Next week the Synod will be asked to vote on a motion to scrap or at least reduce fees charged to couples wanting to get married in church.
Woolford said that, as marriage is seen in the church as a gift from God, “it should be a free gift”.
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