Getting married in the Church of St Cross in the Parish of St Faith A guide for Brides & Grooms to plan their special day About Us - Congratulations! Many congratulations on your engagement to be married! We are delighted that you are considering celebrating your love for each other with the blessing of a Christian wedding here in the Parish of St Faith's in the Church of St Cross. All the information you'll need to start the process of planning your special day are in this guide. It will provide you with information about the steps to take and the conversations for both of you to have with each other and with us in order to celebrate your marriage. We are happy to consider all applications for marriage and we look forward to discussing it with you further. With blessings The Clergy & Team The Parish of St Faith The Hospital of St Cross Parish of St Faith: Office of the Priest in Charge Last Edited 26 July 2018 About the Church The Church at The Hospital of St Cross is situated in the Parish of St Faith in the Church of England Diocese of Winchester. It is the private chapel of the Brothers of the Hospital of St Cross and Almshouse of Noble Poverty. It is where the parishioners of the Parish of St Faith have worshipped for more than 500 years after the original parish church burnt down. This is a long standing act of hospitality by the Hospital of St Cross to the Parish of St Faith. Both the Priest in Charge of the Parish of St Faith and The Master of St Cross are responsible for the spiritual well being of the Brothers and the St Faith's congregation under the Church of England doctrine. Although the Church itself is a private one, the Priest in Charge and the activities of the Parish of St Faith operate like the majority of parish churches with a few small exceptions. Your marriage in the Church of St Cross in the Parish of St Faith will be a Christian one and the Church is legally licensed for Church of England weddings. About the Hospital of St Cross and Almshouse of Noble Poverty The Hospital of St Cross and Almshouse of Noble Poverty is one of England's most glorious almshouses and the oldest one in continuous use. The original charitable status of the Hospital - to provide dignified and supportive housing - still continues after nearly 900 years and within the medieval buildings twenty five elderly men reside. The Hospital of St Cross is their home and they attend worship every day in the Church. The Hospital is governed by a Board of Trustees which includes The Master of St Cross. As a charitable institution, all funds contribute towards the continued care of the Brothers and the beautiful buildings and gardens. Parish of St Faith: Office of the Priest in Charge Last Edited 26 July 2018 Are you eligible to marry here? A marriage service in a Church of England church is underpinned by a legal process and therefore there are a number of administrative aspects to ensure your service is legally binding. The Church at St Cross is the private chapel of the Brothers, therefore the standard Church of England 'rights to marry' or ‘qualifying connections’ at the Church do not apply here as they might in a regular Church of England church. However, there are various ways that you may become eligible to marry here: Option A: You live in the Parish and join the Electoral Roll Option B: You don't live in the Parish and join the Electoral Roll Option C: You don't live in the Parish and apply for The Archbishop of Canterbury's Special Licence Option D: One or both of you are a Foreign National falling into any of the above categories Regardless of which of the above categories you fall into, we look forward to welcoming you to the Parish of St Faith in the Church at St Cross as part of our church family and worshipping with us as often as you are able to, both before and after your wedding. You will always be ensured of a warm welcome. Below you will find more information about the criteria for eligibility: Option A: You live in the Parish and join the Electoral Roll If your main address is within the St Faith's Parish boundary, then you will automatically be able to marry here by joining the St Faith's Parish Electoral Roll. Please note that you must live in the Parish on the date of your wedding. If you live in the Parish when planning your wedding but move away before it, you must ensure you are on the Electoral Roll before you move away to remain eligible. The nationally set Church of England Marriage Fees will apply to your wedding (C £609 for 2018 plus fixed charges for organist, verger and porter), plus a small charge for car parking should you require it. Only one of you needs to be on the Electoral Roll – but you also need to be baptised to do so. You can check if you are within the parish boundary by typing in your postcode here: https://www.achurchnearyou.com/parishfinder.php Option B: You don't live in the Parish and join the Electoral Roll If you live outside of the Parish then you are able to marry here if you are prepared to join the St Faith's Parish Electoral Roll. Only one of you needs to be on the Electoral Roll – but you also need to be baptised to do so. To become a member of the Electoral Roll we would expect to see you for worship at the Church at St Cross at least once a month for six months before applying to be on the Electoral Roll before your Banns of Marriage are read in Church. Being on the Electoral Roll means that the legal requirement of reading your Banns of Marriage can be done in the Church on three Sundays within three months of the date of Parish of St Faith: Office of the Priest in Charge Last Edited 26 July 2018 your wedding. Effectively this means that you would begin this process nine months before the date of your wedding. To apply to be on the Electoral Roll you will need to complete the enrolment form (typically at least three months before your wedding date). If you are not baptised then we will be able to help you with that too as part of your wedding preparation. There is a wide variety of services throughout the week at St Cross, plus the usual festival holidays (Christmas, Easter, Harvest etc). Most couples find this an enjoyable part of wedding preparation, even if you aren’t a regular church goer. Sunday Services: 8am Holy Communion; 9.30am Main Parish Service (2nd Sunday of the month is the All Age Worship); 11am Sung Matins on the 2nd and 4th Sunday of the month. In addition to the Sunday services, Brothers' Matins is at 10am Monday to Saturday. In addition to the nationally set Church of England Marriage Legal Fees (£441 for 2018 plus fixed charges for organist, verger and porter), the Hospital of St Cross charge an additional Heritage Fee of £695 (2019 fee) for weddings couples living outside of the Parish. This goes towards the upkeep of the church and ancient hospital buildings, for which constant repair is needed. The charge includes car parking. Option C: You don't live in the Parish - Archbishop of Canterbury Special Licence If you don't live in the parish, are unable to attend church regularly enough to join the electoral roll but can still legitimately claim a demonstrable connection to the Church at St Cross, then you may be eligible for a Special Licence from the Faculty Office of the Archbishop of Canterbury. The Faculty Office have advised us that they would look favourably on applications from couples who can demonstrate a 'qualifying connection' to the Church - examples would include baptism in the church, residents of The Hospital of St Parish of St Faith: Office of the Priest in Charge Last Edited 26 July 2018 Cross and their children, staff and their children, former staff and others who can claim a strong connection to the church. This is not a straightforward process, takes about three months and can only begin within 18 months of the marriage date. It incurs separate costs and the final outcome is entirely at the discretion of the Faculty Office. More information can be found at www.facultyoffice.org.uk/special-licences/obtaining-a-special-marriage- licence and do talk to us more about this if you think this is the route that may apply to you. Option D: Foreign Nationals Firstly, to be eligible to marry at St Cross you need meet one of the three options outlined above. If however you are not a British Citizen, then there are some additional actions you will need to take: European Economic (EEA) Nationals) If you are not a British Citizen but are a national of one of the following EU/EEA states (and are able to prove this with a passport, valid national identify card, certificate of registration/naturalisation granted by the Secretary of State) then you are able to be married at St Cross provided you meet one of the previously set out options listed above: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Ireland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovena, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland.