Marriages and Civil Partnerships
Important: changes to how marriages are registered are coming.
- From December 2019 the Government is proposing to replace Marriage Registers with a Schedule System.
To book your ceremony in Haringey call us on 020 8489 2605 or pop in to see us. We are open Monday to Friday, 9.30am to 4.30pm - please note that we close from 1pm on the first Thursday each month.
- Haringey Marriage Venues
- Choosing your venue
- Checking Registrars are available to conduct and register your Wedding or Civil Partnership
- Make an appointment to give Notice of Marriage / Notice of Civil Partnership
- Personalising your ceremony
- Our Venues
- Introduction of Marriage Schedules (December 2019)
- Further information
Please also read the rest of this page including The Marriage and Civil Partnership Process in 5 Steps (PDF, 316KB).
Haringey Marriage Venues
We are now at George Meehan House, N22 8YX and not at the Civic Centre
The Haringey Registration and Citizenship Service and Haringey Register Office are now based at:
George Meehan House
294 High Road
Wood Green
London N22 8YX
George Meehan House is a fully refurbished Italianate style house in the middle of Woodside Park, just a few minutes up the road from the Civic Centre but a million miles away in terms of peace and tranquillity. The house delivers a fusion of traditional and contemporary design. We are no longer accepting any bookings for our Ceremony Room at the Haringey Civic Centre, although the Council Chamber is still available subject to availability.
The Earlham Suite
The ceremony suite at George Meehan House (formerly Woodside House) is called The Earlham Suite. The Earlham Suite consists of The Earlham Room which seats just over 24 guests and the larger Woodside and Westbury Rooms.
We are now conducting bookings for The Earlham Suite at George Meehan House. Please note that the venue given on a Notice of Marriage cannot change, and so it is important that notice is given for the correct venue. More information about giving notice can be found on the Notice of Marriage page.
Small Weddings
If your wedding is small, we are able to offer weddings for the statutory fee of £57 (£46 statutory fee plus one £11 certificate) at 10.20am on a Tuesday. These are very basic ceremonies with just the couple and two witnesses present. If you would like to use this service please give notice of marriage for The Earlham Suite and mention that you would like a wedding for the statutory fee at time of booking. These ceremonies take place in our Earlham Room, if more than the two witnesses attend the ceremony the standard Tuesday ceremony rate of £130 will be charged. Please note that every register office is required to offer a ceremony for the £50 fee and you do not have to have a ceremony where you live.
Arranging a wedding or civil partnership requires time and preparation. We have compiled a document called The Marriage and Civil Partnership Process in 5 Steps (PDF, 316KB) to help your planning of a wedding or civil partnership run smoothly.
The five steps to meet the legal requirements for planning a civil wedding/partnership in England and Wales are:
- Choosing your venue
- Checking Registrars are available to conduct and register your wedding or civil partnership
- Make an appointment to give Notice of Marriage / Notice of Civil Partnership
- Giving Notice of Marriage / Civil Partnership - directs to new page
- Have your ceremony within 12 months of the date Notice has been given. In Haringey you can personalise your ceremony
Choosing your venue
A wide range of venues are available including hotels and banqueting suites in addition to traditional venues like Register Offices and Churches*.
Once you have decided which venue you would like to marry in, make a provisional booking with the venue. The venue can be located anywhere in the world although we cannot always assist you if you are having a ceremony outside England or Wales. Book your venue in plenty of time to avoid disappointment and be fully aware of all of the costs involved before committing to a venue.
In Haringey we have a choice of venues including our own Earlham Suite.
- please see our venues section below for more information about The Earlham Suite, and
- the Approved Premises page for details of other venues in Haringey
*A couple can only marry in a church or religious building if it is one or both partners usual place of worship or if one or both partners live in that district. Special arrangements apply to marriages in the Church of England.
Checking Registrars are available to conduct and register your Wedding or Civil Partnership
Speak to the Register Office in the area where you are having your legal ceremony to ensure they are free on the date and at the time you want your ceremony. Registrars can get booked out a long way into the future, so do not assume people will be free to do your ceremony on the day and time that you want.
Haringey Register Office can be contacted by calling 020 8489 2605, or by sending an email to registrars@haringey.gov.uk
Make an appointment to give Notice of Marriage / Notice of Civil Partnership
- Please note: a Civil Partnership can only be between two people of the same sex
Notice must be given in order to get married.
- To book a Notice of Marriage appointment please book online - payment starting at £35 per person will be taken at time of booking. This fee is non refundable unless your appointments are cancelled or changed at least two clear working days ahead. Additional fees for people subject to immigration, Saturday appointments (if booked online or if fee not collected at time of booking), late or early appointments will be collected locally
Please note: if your preferred date is not available, the booking system will offer the next available date. Saturday Notices are available for some but not all Saturdays.
Unless one or both parties are subject to immigration control, Notice must be given to the district where you both live. To give Notice you must establish residency. Residency is established after you have lived at an address for seven clear days. If coming from abroad the date a person arrives in the UK and the date Notice is given is not taken into account. For example if you arrive on the 1st of the month the earliest Notice can be given would be the 9th of the month.
When giving Notice both parties must present evidence of their name, age and nationalities. This is normally done by presenting a passport. Some ID cards can also be accepted.
- Please see our documents needed to give notice of marriage page for more information
Proof of address is needed and evidence the parties are free to marry, such as divorce documents if applicable. Please note that most overseas divorces require clearance from the General Register Office. We will submit your documents to them on your behalf. This process normally takes at least three weeks and clearance is not always granted.
Evidence of immigration status is not required but if one or both parties are subject to immigration control you are advised to seek advice from the Home Office to ensure you comply with the immigration law side of getting married.
Once Notice has been given, the Notice goes on public display for a period of at least 28 clear days and possibly 70 clear days. Please see the Notice of Marriage and Civil Partnership page for more information.
Forming a Civil Partnership
We offer a number of ways to form a Civil Partnership. Ceremonies can take place in our Civic Suite, at one of our approved venues or in our Register Office. At the Civic Suite and at approved venues you have the option to personalise your ceremony. If you would like to keep things simple and keep costs down you can simply sign a Civil Partnership Schedule in front of your two witnesses in the Register Office. Signings take place each Tuesday at a cost of £50 per couple. For signings only please give Notice of Civil Partnership for the Register Office and not the Civic Suite.
Personalising your ceremony
Our Weddings and Civil Partnerships Team are here to help ensure that your special day is a memorable occasion. We offer a friendly and unhurried service tailored to you; from the simple to the extravagant we are here to cater to your requirements. A choice of ceremony scripts are available including the option for you to create your own wedding or civil partnership script for a small additional charge.
Please also look at the personalising your ceremony page to see a choice of ceremony scripts and ideas to personalise your ceremony.
Our Venues
We offer a number of venues to meet all tastes and budgets. Our range of approved premises includes Alexandra Palace, Tottenham Hotspur Football Club and Bruce Castle Museum.
Visit our approved premises page for more information.
The Earlham Suite
Our weddings now take place in The Earlham Suite - our new ceremony suite George Meehan House. The house is located in Woodside Park N22, between Wood Green and Palmers Green (Wood Green on the Piccadilly Line is the nearest underground station and Bowes Park is the nearest national rail station).
The Earlham Room has seating for up to 24 people and the Woodside Room has seating for around 70 people, The Westbury Room seats around 50 people. Notice for all rooms is covered under The Earlham Suite wedding licence. Please confirm availability by calling 020 8489 2605 before giving Notice of Marriage for weddings in the Woodside and Westbury Rooms (our bigger rooms).
The Council Chamber at Haringey Civic Centre
Important - please note that we are not able to take bookings for weddings for the main ceremony room at the Civic Centre.
The Council Chamber
The Council Chamber is our largest room with seating for 180 guests including a 100 seat upper gallery area (gallery not suitable for young children). There is also standing room on the lower level.
This is the perfect venue for larger celebrations. The Council Chamber with its wood panelling has modern comfortable free form seating in the main chamber making it the adaptable venue for your special occasion.
This room also benefits from having a white screen and projector that can be used for displaying photographs / PowerPoint presentations for a couples special day. This room is primarily on the first floor with access to the Gallery on the second floor. A lift and spiral staircase provide access to the first floor.
Parking and Public Transport
Parking
George Meehan House - parking at George Meehan House (post code N22 8YX) is limited to a wedding car and pick up/drop off parking only, we recommend that people arrive using public transport. There is usually some parking on a first come first served basis at the front of the Civic Centre which is 7 minutes walk away. Restrictions apply on side streets from 11am to 1pm.
Civic Centre - please use post code N22 9SB if driving to the Civic Centre. Free parking in our large car park at the back of the Civic Centre is usually available at weekends.
London Underground and National Rail
Wood Green Station on the Piccadilly Line is less than 15 minutes walk away and Bowes Park Station on the Moorgate to Hertford Line is about the same walk.
Buses
A number of buses including the 121, 329, 141 and 232 stop outside the gates to George Meehan House.
Being based in Wood Green we benefit from excellent connections by bus to all parts of North London and beyond.
Payments and fees
Details of fees for all of our weddings and services can be found on the Register Office Fees page.
All ceremonies must be paid in full at least 3 months before the ceremony date. Fees are subject to change until paid in full. We reserve the right to cancel ceremonies not paid in full by the due date.
Introduction of Marriage Schedules - information subject to change and dates to be confirmed
Important changes from December 2019
Currently marriages are registered in a Marriage Register and a marriage certificate is issued during the ceremony. From a date to be confirmed in December 2019, the Government proposes replacing marriage registers with Schedules.
A Schedule is an A4 size piece of paper that contains details of the marriage. Currently two Certificates for Marriage are issued 28 / 70 clear days after Notice of Marriage has been given. These are then used at the wedding ceremony, and the details of the marriage are captured in the marriage register.
A handwritten Marriage Certificate is given to the couple straight away. Under a Schedule system, it is likely that the couple will sign the printed Schedule. The details are then entered onto the marriage computer system by the register office in the area of marriage, who then issues a printed marriage certificate.
This is likely to mean that a marriage certificate will not be issued straight away (even more likely where a wedding takes place away from a register office, such as in a church or hotel). Where a couple get married in a church or religious building, they will need to return the Schedule to the register office in the area of marriage within seven days of the legal wedding.
Weddings in religious buildings from December 2019
Currently Certificates for Marriage otherwise known as 'The Blues' need to be given to the church or religious building before they can marry a couple. The Government proposes that Certificates for Marriage will be replaced by Schedules at a date to be confirmed in December 2019. Once Certificates for Marriage are replaced by Schedules, it is anticipated that Certificates for Marriage will not be able to be used to get married. It is expected that couples will need to collect a Marriage Schedule (one per couple) from the register office in the area of marriage.
To avoid having to pay two visits (for weddings from December 2019) to collect paperwork for a religious marriage, it is recommended that couples do not collect paperwork until after the Governments change over date from Certificates for Marriage to Marriage Schedules. Where a couple already have Certificates for Marriage and get married after the change to Marriage Schedules they are likely to need to swap their existing Certificates for Marriage for a Marriage Schedule. All details are still to be confirmed by the Government and we will update this page regularly as the situation becomes clearer. Further details about Church of England marriages to follow.
Travelling immediately after a ceremony
Under a Schedule System you may not get a marriage certificate at the time of a ceremony. If you are getting married from December 2019 onwards and plan on travelling immediately after a ceremony in your new married name, please exercise extreme caution as you may not have your marriage certificate in time to travel. This could have implications if your name in your passport does not match the name on your ticket or if you are asked by a country to show that you are legally married to one another.
Government sign off
The change to a Schedule System requires government approval. Please take the information above as a guide to what is expected to happen at this time. The change from Certificates for Marriage to Marriage Schedules is expected to be agreed around September 2019 with the change happening at a date to be confirmed in December 2019.
Further information
If after reading these pages you require further advice or assistance please get in contact:
- Tel 020 8489 2605 or
- Email registrars@haringey.gov.uk
We will be happy to assist you with organising your special day.
