Copthorne Village website

If you decide that you want to get married at St. John’s, the first thing to do is contact Mary Smith on 01342 714308 and confirm with her the availability of the church on the day you have chosen for your wedding - this is often easier than booking a suitable venue in the area for the reception! We can receive requests for bookings at least a year in advance but that does not mean that a shorter notice would not be possible.

You will then be asked to complete a form giving details about yourselves and contact information. Ideally this is done at a pre-arranged meeting and a deposit of £50 towards the total cost will be payable at this stage. If you do not live in the parish of St John’s, you will be very welcome and encouraged to become a regular worshipper at our church, thereby becoming eligible for inclusion on the Church Electoral Roll. This will entitle you to marry at St John’s after your Banns have been read. The Church of England website has some useful Marriage hints and information too.

All couples wishing to marry at St. John’s are invited by the Vicar, Rev'd Alastair Cutting and Assistant Priest Rev'd Paul Smith and his wife Mary to attend a Wedding Preparation Evening in church. These take place two or three times in the year and offer an opportunity to meet with other prospective brides and grooms to go through the marriage service. You will be given a comprehensive Information Pack (available as A5 sheets , or as a booklet ready for folding) covering all aspects of your wedding at St. John’s such as total cost, suitable music, flowers etc. and hopefully it will answer any question you may have.

Where one or both partners have been married before, Copthorne's Re-Marriage in Church Policy is available here . The standard explanation and Application Form we have to use is available here .

The Common Worship Wedding Service we use is available here , or in booklet form here . We also have an order of service Prayers and Dedication after a Civil Marriage here , which also includes services for Thanksgiving for Marriage and Wedding Anniversary celebrations.

Our Information Pack has much useful information for helping to plan the Service, as does the CofE website here and here . 

We want all the couples who make a decision to marry in St. John's to have the perfect once-in-a-lifetime wedding day and will do all we can to ensure that this happens - the only thing we have no control over is the weather, but even on rainy days, the photos taken in church can be spectacular!