If you are planning your wedding – congratulations on your engagement.  We are delighted that you may be considering a church in our Benefice for the occasion and hope that you will find the information here helpful.

We love weddings and using our four historic country churches for joyful occasions.  Be assured that we will do all we can to make your special day happen the way you would like it to, and will offer a warm welcome to your family and friends.  The churches are all photogenic Grade 2* Listed buildings, each with a bell tower, organ, and plenty of scope for being beautifully decorated.

If you are having your wedding in another Church somewhere else and need to arrange for your Banns of Marriage to be read here, please complete the simple enquiry form here.

A wedding in the Church of England combines both Christian celebration and the requirements that ensure you are legally married under British law.  You will find answers to almost any questions you may have about a church wedding on the Church of England’s website here, but a few things specific to the Benefice churches follow.

Who can get married in the Benefice?

Anyone living within the four Chase Benefice parishes may be married in any of the churches.  Don’t worry if you live outside the parishes, you can still be married here if you are a church member, or by a qualifying connection.  Since 2015 special legal requirements also apply for non-EEA nationals.  Being divorced is not necessarily a bar to marriage in church.  We would be very happy to discuss any of these matters with you – please get in touch.

Same-Sex Marriage and Civil Partnership Celebrations

At the moment Church of England priests are not allowed by law to conduct same-sex marriages or civil partnership ceremonies. However it is quite legal for us to offer services of prayer and thanksgiving following a same-sex marriage or civil partnership, and the clergy are very happy to talk to you about this if you would like to explore the possibility.

Preparing for your marriage

We believe that investing time in marriage preparation is the best gift we can offer in helping you prepare for married life beyond the wedding day itself.  This will be discussed with you when you book your wedding.

How many people can the churches seat?

We are able to accommodate various sizes of congregations in our beautiful church buildings using a combination of pews and chairs.  The following should provide you with a rough guide as to what is possible in each building.

Chadlington: pews – 72; chairs at back of church and in south and north aisles – 117; chairs in north transept [restricted view] 23. Total 212
Ascott: Pews – 116; chairs in Lady Chapel – 20; chairs in north aisle [restricted view] – 21. Total 157
Spelsbury: pews – 128; chairs at back of church – 39; chairs in north transept [restricted view] – 20. Total 187
Enstone: pews – 64; chairs at back of church – 28; chairs in south aisle [some restricted view] – 72; chairs in north aisle [some restricted view] – 16; chairs by organ – 14. Total 194

It is possible accommodate slightly larger congregations by making use of the choir stalls and Enstone’s Lady Chapel and will be happy to discuss this with you.

How much will the wedding cost?

A breakdown of fees for 2024 in the Chase Benefice can be seen here.

What next?

Contact the Rector, Revd. Mark Abrey, with any questions you may have, to arrange a meeting, and to discuss a possible wedding date as early as possible. You can telephone him on 01608 676572 or complete the enquiry form here.  We look forward to hearing from you!