Appointments to give notice of marriage or civil partnership will once more be available at all of the following offices from week commencing 19 April 2021:

• Shropshire Register Office, Shirehall, Shrewsbury, SY2 6ND
• Ludlow Museum and Resource Centre 8/9 Parkway,Ludlow SY8 2PG
• Oswestry Library, Arthur Street Oswestry SY11 1JN
• Bridgnorth Library, Listley Street Bridgnorth, WV16 4AW
• Market Drayton Library, Cheshire Street, Market Drayton TF9 1PH
• Whitchurch Library, Civic Centre, High Street, Whitchurch SY13 1AX

When attending an appointment the following will apply, please read carefully:

• A maximum of two adults should attend an appointment. Please don't bring children or babies if at all possible.
• Please don't arrive early – if you arrive early you should wait in your vehicle or outside the office until the time of your appointment.
• Please don't arrive late – if you're any more than five minutes late we won't be able to see you.
• Please don't attend the office if you or anyone in your household has coronavirus symptoms.
• If you appear to have any symptoms when you arrive at the office you won't be seen and will have to book a fresh appointment.
• Please wear masks or face coverings.
• Contactless payments will be our preferred method of payment – no cash will be accepted.

For more information about ceremonies during Covid 19 please see our latest FAQ document.

There has never been more choice about where to get married in Shropshire, with many approved premises now offering alternatives to the traditional church or register office wedding. However there are legal requirements which must be observed, wherever you marry.

Weddings have to take place in a permanent structure. Many of our venues have outside structures licensed for marriages and civil partnerships to allow couples to marry in a less formal setting. It's not possible to licence temporary structures for marriages or civil partnerships.

To arrange a wedding at an approved venue, you must first make provisional arrangements with the venue, and then contact the Registration Service on 0345 678 9016. We're now pleased to be able to accept provisional bookings for ceremonies up to two years in advance of the proposed ceremony date. See our prices section for fee information. You must still give notice in the district/s where you live.

The legal process - notice of marriage

Before you can marry in England and Wales you need to complete certain legal preliminaries. You'll always need to give a notice of marriage if you're both over 18 years of age and marrying in:

• A local authority ceremony room
• One of the many approved venues, including stately homes, hotels and country inns in Shropshire
• A church or chapel of a denomination other than the Church of England or Church in Wales

If you're intending to get married in the Church of England or Church in Wales, find out more about that process here.

When giving notice you must state the name of the venue in which you're intending to marry. If you change your mind about your venue once notice has been given, you'll have to give a fresh notice and go through the process again.

A notice of marriage must be given in person, by both of the couple, to a registrar in their local registration district. If you live in the Shropshire Council area and both have British or EEA nationality, there are a number of registration service points at which you can do this. To do this you will need to book an appointment, which carries a fee. See our prices section for fee information.

Click on the headings below to find out about the rules for giving notice of marriage, depending on your own circumstances.