Cheshire East Registrar Question and Answer
Alan Clarke is the Superintendent Registrar for Cheshire East Registration Authority and he is available to answer any questions you have on the planning of your wedding ceremony whether church or civil ceremony Alan will be able to help.
Email your questions to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it and the best and most frequently asked questions will be published on this page.
Previously asked questions:
From Anna Jarvis, Handforth
I have two bridesmaids in attendance at my wedding and I would like them both to sign the marriage certificate as our witnesses. My friend tells me that this is not possible because one bridesmaid is only 14 and you have to be older than this to sign. Can you help?
The Marriage Acts don’t state an age that a person must reach before being able act as a witness on a marriage register. Common practice is to ask for witnesses that have reached an age when they can contract a marriage ceremony. If I were conducting the ceremony, I would suggest we had two adult witnesses and also you niece, all of whom would sign the marriage register.
From Kirsty Bevan, Nantwich
I was divorced five years ago and am getting married later in the year; I am worried about which name will be used for the ceremony. My fiancé is really unhappy about me being called by my previous married name during the ceremony. Please help
This is a particularly sensitive issue and a question that is frequently asked. The name in which a marriage is contracted is the name in which the person is generally known by. This means that if, following your divorce, you have continued to be known by your married name then that is the name that should be used during the ceremony and appear on your marriage certificate. If, on the other hand, you reverted to your maiden name then that is the name that is used.
From Diane Hayes, Sandbach
My father and I are confused about on which side of me he walks as we go down the aisle. Can you help?
I think this is probably the most frequently ask question that has been asked throughout my career. The following is the advice that was given to me when I first became a registrar. As the bride and he father walk down the aisle, the father walks on the right of the bride and holds her right hand, which he places in the groom’s left hand. The historic reason is that this left the bride’s father’s right hand is free to draw his sword should he need to protect his daughter. In the same manner for the recession back down the aisle, the groom holds the bride’s right hand so he can show her off to his family.
From Katie Arnold, Macclesfield
My fiancé and I are considering marrying on Crete in the late autumn of 2010. There are lots of travel companies offering to make arrangements for us but we would like to do this for ourselves. I want to be sure we do everything correctly. Have you any advice?
Assuming you are both British Subjects (if you are not, please contact your local register office as soon as possible) then it is not to difficult to ensure that all the legal parts of your marriage are correctly completed. Check with the Greek Embassy for how long the ‘certificate of no impediment’ issued by British authorities is valid and which address should be used for the place of marriage on Crete. Arrange, with your local registrar, for you both to give notice of marriage within that period. 16 days after notices have been given, certificates of ‘no impediment’ will issued to you and should be given to the British Consular for the area in which you are to marry. He will advise you about any preliminaries the Greek authorities require to be carried out prior to your marriage. Finally, ensure that following your marriage ceremony on Crete you ask the local registrar for more than one marriage certificate as you may find it difficult to obtain a duplicate if the first certificate is lost.
