These terms and conditions outline your rights and are in addition to any notification of fees due or taken for services from us.  Please check here regularly as these terms and conditions are subject to change.

Ceremony bookings

Fees are taken at the point of booking.  Your ceremony booking is accepted on the condition that:

Civil marriage and civil partnership ceremony

• Your signed terms and conditions have been returned within 14 days of booking.
• No legal impediment to the marriage or civil partnership exists, and legal preliminaries are completed within the statutory time limits (see “Notice” information below).
• Any divorce / foreign divorce / dissolution papers / Home Office referrals are given clearance* and fees paid.
• The ceremony and any other fees and any increases are paid in full.
• The requested date and time of the ceremony is available within the commitments of the Milton Keynes Registration Service.

* clearance times for documents sent to the Registrar General or the Home Office are outside of our control

Notice (intention to marry / form a civil partnership)

Notices are given individually and in person.  A notice is venue specific and is valid for exactly 12 months from the date your notice is given. See our website for full details.

If notice will be given outside of the Milton Keynes registration district, please ensure your ceremony is booked with us first to ensure availability. Then ensure that notice is given within the 12-month notice period in the other district. 

If notice will be given with us, please ensure you book this when you book your ceremony.  Ensure you book a date within the 12-month notice period before your ceremony.

For example, if you book your ceremony for 1 May 2023, the earliest you can give notice is 1 May 2022.

Other ceremonies (naming, renewal of vows and private citizenship)

• Your signed terms and conditions have been returned within 14 days of booking.
• Proof of birth registration or prior marriage / civil partnership, if requested, is received.
• The ceremony fee and any increase are paid in full.
• The requested date and time of the ceremony is available within the commitments of the Milton Keynes Registration Service.
• Citizenship ceremonies are subject to regulations imposed by the Home Office therefore Milton Keynes Registration Service cannot accept any liability for circumstances outside of our control.

Please note: Naming and Renewal of Vows ceremonies do not give or have any legal status or rights.

Ceremony fees and changes

Full fees are required at the time of booking for ceremonies.  This includes a non-refundable booking fee.

The ceremony fee may include the statutory fee for one or more certificates.

If you wish to move the date of your ceremony at least 30 days’ written notice must be provided.  Any difference in charges and a change fee will be payable.  If you do not provide at least 30 days’ notice any fees paid will be lost and a fresh booking will need to be made and new fees paid.

Bookings made after August 2020

Bookings made after August 2020 would be made in the knowledge that further restrictions and lockdowns, due to the pandemic, may impact ceremonies and therefore all fees related to moves / cancellations or new notices will be chargeable.  If we are unable to proceed (i.e. if we cannot legally carry out a service) the change fee would be waived but all other fees / cancellation / notice charges would be due.

This may mean numbers of attendees and other restrictions around items such as content may be in place.  We aim to provide services in line with current Government guidance.

Confirmation of ceremony booking

You will receive an automated email detailing your provisional booking with us.  All ceremony bookings will only be confirmed on receipt of your signed confirmation sheet which can be found attached to your confirmation email or at the end of this document (you only need to return that page).  If the signed confirmation sheet is not returned within the 14 days, your booking will not be confirmed and will be removed from our schedule of planned activities.  Any refunds due will be made after the non-refundable booking or administration fee is applied.

Room capacity and use of the garden at our offices

For fire, safety and comfort the number of guests must not exceed the capacity of the room.  Additional guests will not be able to remain in the ceremony room.  Details of the room capacity for the Register Office room and Flowers Suite can be found on our website.  Please contact the approved venue directly for their room capacity.

Our premises are smoke free, this includes the use of electronic cigarettes, so please refrain from smoking whilst on site.

Our garden is only available to ceremony attendees for a short while after their ceremony (15 - 20 minutes) and only biodegradable confetti may be thrown. 

The Council may claim for any other types of confetti to be removed as this damages the lawn and machinery so please make your guests aware. 

Please consider other ceremonies and remove any litter from site before leaving.

Licensed outside structure agreement form

Some of our venues have a licenced outside structure that you may wish to book for your ceremony.  However we need to advise you that it will not always be possible to hold a ceremony outside due to inclement weather which can include rain (or the likelihood of showers), wind, very cold conditions, very hot and sunny conditions with no / limited shade for guests and any other extreme conditions.

This is for guest comfort and the protection of legal records.

A licensed room at your venue must be available as an alternative on the day so that your ceremony can go ahead on time.  You will need to make plans for your chosen room inside too.  Please ensure that the number of guests invited to a possible outside ceremony can also be accommodated into your chosen room.

The decision on where the ceremony will take place is the registration team’s responsibility and their decision is final. 

If you have booked a licensed outside structure please tick the box on the last page of these terms and conditions to confirm you agree:

• that the decision on where the ceremony will take place is the registration team’s responsibility and that their decision is final. 
• if your ceremony cannot take place in the outside structure for any reason you will be happy to proceed in the alternative room at your venue.

Ceremony content

The Milton Keynes Registration Service will provide the ceremony.

Statutory marriage or civil partnership registrations delivered at our Register Office are subject to specific booking conditions and exclusive to weekday availability only. The content of this marriage or civil partnership registration is predetermined and not subject to customisation.

Enhanced marriage or civil partnership ceremonies can be delivered in our licensed room or at an approved venue of your choice.  The content of the ceremony has a range of additional options that need to be agreed with the Registration Service in advance of the ceremony (subject to Government guidance).  Complete your options form nearer the time.  If you wish, a meeting to discuss your options can be arranged (a fee applies).

For enhanced ceremonies we encourage you to personalise the ceremony with your own choice of readings, music and additional vows – subject to the ceremony content remaining appropriate, dignified and in line with Government guidance.

There must be no religious content whatsoever.  All choices for readings, vows, any other spoken content by someone other than the registrars and music must be submitted to the Milton Keynes Registration Services for approval at least a week prior to the ceremony.  This can be done by email or by posting this to us.  If we need you to change anything, we aim to explain the reason why.

All ceremonies are exclusively delivered by Milton Keynes Registration Service staff to ensure a high degree of solemnity in keeping with the occasion and to ensure legal requirements are met.  The Milton Keynes Registration Service reserve the right to make the final decision on any wording used, and will not accept liability for any omission, which may be caused by reasons beyond its control.

The Milton Keynes Registration Service will allocate personnel to attend your ceremony and reserves the right to substitute other experienced and qualified staff in case of sickness or other unforeseen circumstances on the day.

Late start of a ceremony

The Milton Keynes Registration Service will not accept any liability where a ceremony is cancelled on the day due to the late arrival of the couple and / or any guests.  We reserve the right to take appropriate action to ensure other ceremonies our staff need to attend are delivered at the agreed time.

No refund will be made in these circumstances and a new booking will need to be made and paid for in full again if you want us to perform the ceremony at another time (subject to staff / booking availability and legal preliminaries).

Cancellation of ceremonies

Your ceremony may be cancelled by the Milton Keynes Registration Service if:

• Your signed terms and conditions are not returned within 14 days of booking.
• The total fees have not been paid.
• Legal preliminaries, before or on the day, cannot be completed.
• You or your guests arrive late for your ceremony.

Where a ceremony is unable to take place due to legal restrictions identified during a notice of marriage or notice of civil partnership meeting any refund will be made in line with our cancellation policy and with the non-refundable booking and any administration fee applied.

Cancellation of a ceremony booking by a couple:

If you need to cancel your ceremony you will be required to notify us in writing.  Any ceremony payments made will be subject to the following refund schedule and non-refundable deposit being deducted:

• More than six months before the ceremony date you will receive a full refund
• Between six months and 3 months before the ceremony date you will receive a 75% refund
• Between three months and 30 days before the ceremony date you will receive a 50% refund
• Less than 30 days before the ceremony or failure to cancel in writing before the ceremony date no refund will be made

Appointments

Appointment booking fees cannot be refunded if you fail to keep your appointment or if your information does not meet the requirements set out on our website.

Additional fees may be payable and we will advise you of these at your appointment if not before.

Cancellation of appointments by customers

Booking fees for appointments paid online or over the phone are non-refundable after the 14-day cooling-off period.  By making an appointment you are authorising us to carry out any necessary work before your appointment and therefore any cancellation within 14 days of booking may incur a fee. 

If you wish to cancel or move your appointment you need to give us at least 14 days' notice by email to registrars@milton-keynes.gov.uk.  Please include your booking reference.  If you cannot provide 14 days' notice a change fee will be payable.

Your appointment will be cancelled without refund if:

• You don't give us notice as above
• You arrive late for your appointment
• You do not have the documents specified on our website or gov.uk

Certificates of birth, marriage / civil partnership or death

Certificates issued at the time of registration or after are copies of a registration entry and are called ‘copy certificates’, there is no original.

Copy certificates are required for most official purposes and are considered bespoke orders and therefore fall outside of the 14-day cooling-off period.

Copy certificates at point of registration (for birth, marriage and civil partnership or death) – These can be pre-ordered when booking and further copies can be ordered during your appointment.  Any fees paid for copy certificates that are issued are non-refundable.  Please read the section on Corrections.

Copy certificates after registration – These can be ordered online or over the phone.  You will need to provide your full details, the reason why you need the certificate and sufficient information for us to locate the registration.  If, on searching our records, the birth, marriage, civil partnership or death did not occur in the Milton Keynes registration district (or has yet to be registered in the district) we will not refund your fee.

If you were married in a church or place of worship in the Milton Keynes registration district certificates will be ordered from us. There may be a delay if the church or place of worship has not returned your schedule or marriage document to us.

We are not able to help with adoption or still birth certificates.  Please contact the General Register Office via www.gov.uk for these types of certificates.

Copy certificates that are posted

We are not liable for any certificates lost in the post.  No refunds or replacements will be provided.  If you wish your order to be insured and traceable, Royal Mail Special Delivery is available for a fee.

Corrections

Corrections can be costly and difficult to make and not all will be approved by the General Register Office.

It is your responsibility to make sure all information is correct before signing any registration information, the register or schedule (for birth, death, marriage and civil partnership) as this is a legal document. 

It is important that you thoroughly check all the information on the document before signing, please pay careful attention to the spelling of all names and places as well as dates. 

You will be required to pay a statutory consideration fee for any corrections, most of which will require the approval of the Registrar General*.

Evidence of the error will need to be provided and appropriate forms completed.

* The Registrar General does not provide a timescale for the consideration of corrections

Our fees

Fees will be taken and held at the point of initial booking.

By asking us to book an appointment, ceremony or other service you are providing authority for us to commence work and we can charge a fee for this.

The Milton Keynes Registration Service fees are subject to change on the 1 April each year.  As we take bookings for some services up to two years in advance, if 1 April falls between the time of booking and the date of your ceremony or appointment the Registration Service will pass on all future fee increases to you.

Statutory fees are set by government departments and we must charge these.  We will charge you the fee due at the time the service is used.

All payments should be made by debit or credit card.  Alternative arrangements can be made where this is not possible however there may be a fee.

All our fees are published on the Milton Keynes Registration Service website.  Please get in touch if you need us to confirm fees and due dates.

Change fee

A change fee is payable whenever details of a booking are changed and this includes cancellation, changing the time, date or venue of a ceremony or appointment (excluding birth and death registration appointments).

Where applicable, this may require an updated or additional appointment or ceremony fee to be paid.  It may also be necessary for you to give fresh Notices, as these are specific to your chosen venue and are only valid for one year.  Our fees are detailed on our website.

Liability

The Milton Keynes Registration Service will not accept liability for:

• The failure of any music system or media provided by the venue, yourself or a third party.
• Any delay or loss caused by you, or your guests, late or non-arrival at the due date and time.
• Any loss caused by a request from you, your venue, or your representatives, to delay or cancel the ceremony.
• Any loss or compensation where a ceremony is stopped from proceeding because (a) it would be void if it went ahead, (b) an offence under the Marriage or Civil Partnership Acts would be committed, and (c) it would be against the public interest.
• Any decision to delay the ceremony due to circumstances beyond our control such as late notice, foreign divorce approvals or Home Office regulations.

General

In the event of a 'Force Majeure', the Milton Keynes Registration Service will endeavour to perform your ceremony on your chosen day.  We strongly recommend that you take out ceremony insurance to cover losses or expenses incurred in the case of events outside our control.

'Force Majeure' means war, civil war, armed conflict, terrorist attack, governmental action, fire, flood, severe weather conditions, pandemic or epidemic or any other act or matter which notwithstanding the reasonable diligence and foresight of Milton Keynes City Council and its partner providers, is beyond their reasonable control.

• Any reference to working days does not include Saturday, Sunday, Bank or Public holidays.
• Approval of the venue is granted only in connection with the provision of ceremonies. The Milton Keynes Registration Service cannot accept liability for the failure or neglect on behalf of the venue, for any agreement between you and the venue for the use or provision of any services and / or facilities.
• Any complaint or claim should be made in writing to the Milton Keynes Registration Service within 28 working days of the ceremony.
• Marriage and Civil Partnership Acts - means the Acts of Parliament (and any regulations made under those Acts) covering the legal preliminaries to, the solemnization and registration of a civil marriage/civil partnership either in a register office or approved premises within England and Wales.
• Venue - means Approved Premises approved by the Milton Keynes Registration Service under the Civil Marriages and Civil Partnerships (Approved Premises) Acts for the solemnization and registration of civil marriages and civil partnerships.

Customer complaints

The Milton Keynes Registration Service considers customer complaints very seriously.  We subscribe to the principles of The Local Government Ombudsman and have processes in place to deal with both complaints, comments and compliments in a timely and thorough manner.  To find out more visit the Milton Keynes City Council website.

Right to cancel (online and telephone payments only)

You have the right to cancel any contract made online or over the phone within 14 days of booking without giving any reason.

To exercise the right to cancel, you must inform us of your decision to cancel this contract either by post or email.  You may use the cancellation form below, but it is not obligatory.  If you provide this cancellation electronically, we will acknowledge receipt.

To meet the cancellation deadline, it is sufficient for you to send your communication concerning your exercise of the right to cancel before the cancellation period had expired.

Effects of cancellation

If you cancel this contract within 14 days of booking, we will reimburse any payment made (*Important - see note below).

We will make the reimbursement without undue delay, and not later than 14 days after the day on which we are informed of your decision to cancel this contract.

We will make the reimbursement using the same means of payment as you used for the initial transaction, unless we have expressly agreed otherwise; in any event, you will not incur any fees as a result of the reimbursement.

*Important – By agreeing our terms and conditions you are requesting us to begin the performance of services during the cancellation period, you need to pay us an amount which is in proportion to what has been performed until you have communicated your cancellation to us.  There are no refunds for bespoke services.  See our fees and charges table for the amounts.

 

Cancellation form
You may use this form to cancel your contract or write / email the following details to us.  Please send this to us using the contact details at the end of this document.
I / We hereby give notice that I / We cancel my / our contract of sale of the following goods / for the supply of the following service (please insert details):
Description of goods / service:
Ordered / received on date:
Name and address of consumer(s):
Signature of consumer(s): (only if this form is notified on paper)
Date:

 

Confirmation form - weddings, civil partnership and ceremony bookings
We have read and agree to the terms and conditions contained on the Milton Keynes City Council registration services website, including the section "Late start of a ceremony" and the possible consequences of lateness by the couple and / or guests.
If you have booked an outside ceremony please confirm you accept the terms and conditions for this:  YES / NO
Please accept this as confirmation of our booking.
Booking reference:
Date and time of ceremony:
Venue:
Full names:
Signatures:
Date:
Please return this page to us within 14 days to confirm your booking: By email:       registrars@milton-keynes.gov.uk By post:         Register Office, Civic, 1 Saxon Gate East, Central Milton Keynes, MK9 3EJ        Call us:          01908 372101

A terms and conditions form will also be attached to your booking confirmation email. 

If you have any queries, please do not hesitate to contact us.