Licensing your venue for civil marriages and civil partnerships
If you manage or own a venue, you can apply for a licence to hold marriage and civil partnership ceremonies. It is valid for 3 years.
Civil marriages and civil partnerships must take place in a permanent structure (built premises) or linked outdoor area that is regularly available to the public for use for the solemnisation of marriages, or the formation of civil partnerships.
Private houses cannot be approved, as the requirement for the venue to be regularly available to the public excludes residential properties from eligibility.
A venue cannot be approved if it is religious premises that are used solely or mainly for religious purposes. However, the presence of features such as stained-glass windows, religious imagery, or iconography would not, on their own, be grounds for refusal. These features do not automatically make a venue “religious premises” for the purposes of approval.
This can include the building and the grounds of:
- Restaurants and public houses
- Hotels
- Museums and galleries
- Theatres and cinemas
- Stately homes and castles
- Tourist attractions
Built premises
This means a fixed, permanent building that can’t be moved and has at least one room. It can also mean a boat or similar vessel, but only if it is permanently moored and not intended to move.
Linked outdoor areas
Linked outdoor areas are outdoor spaces within the same property boundary as the licensed building. These areas are optional and must be included in the licence application if they are intended to be used for the solemnisation of marriages and civil partnerships.
This means that any areas within the boundary of the land of which the licensed building form part, which are not built premises, and which may be used in common with the licensed building. This includes outdoor locations within the boundary of the same property as the licensed building but, in particular, permits marriages and civil partnerships to be held in semi-permanent structures (such as marquees) within the linked outdoor area.
Many couples are looking for a wedding venue with a difference. Your venue could be the thing they are after. If you're not sure, email VenueLicensing@eastsussex.gov.uk .
How we support you
The licence to hold civil marriages and civil partnerships can only be issued by East Sussex County Council.
East Sussex Registration will work closely with our licenced venues, to promote civil ceremonies and to provide couples with a unique and memorable experience.
We will support new and existing venues to ensure they are fully prepared to facilitate statutory ceremonies and to keep them informed of any changes to legalisation that may occur.
East Sussex Registration staff will:
- Notify the Responsible Person(s) on duty of their arrival at the premises and liaise with them over the arrangements for the ceremony.
- Abide by any rules and regulations affecting the building and/or property provided they do not conflict with:
- East Sussex Registration’s requirements and conditions for Approved Premises for Civil Marriages and Civil Partnerships.
- Regulations and/or the Code of Practice issued by the Registrar General.
- The various Marriage Acts and Regulations.
- The Civil Partnerships Act and Regulations.
- Their statutory responsibilities.
Overview & timeline for the application process
- Start by learning about the key responsibilities and statutory conditions. This includes reading the East Sussex Fire Regulation Service guidelines and understanding that the Fire Authority will carry out a fire inspection of the premises. See Statutory and local requirements.
- You will also need to confirm that no planning permission is necessary for the venue to hold marriage or civil partnership ceremonies on the premises. See Planning permission.
- You will need to have the necessary documents ready and the relevant contact details. For a complete list, see Before you apply.
- Complete and submit the application form.
After you submit your application:
- The licensing process can take 8 to 10 weeks. We will contact you within that time.
- You will provide us with text and images for the website listing.
- We will contact you to arrange a BACS payment of the fee.
- Couples cannot give legal notice for a marriage or civil partnership to take place at your venue until the licence has been approved by East Sussex Registration.
- We will publish a public notice of your application for 21 days. Current licence applications are open to objections during this period.
- The Proper Officer will consider any objections received during the 21-day period.
- A member of the team will visit the venue to complete a Risk Assessment on behalf of East Sussex County Council.
- A visit will be made to conduct a final inspection.
- Once the venue licence has been granted, the venue will be approved for 3 years.
- East Sussex County Council maintains an up-to-date register of approved licensed premises available for public inspection which includes:
- The name and full postal address of the Approved Premises
- The description of the licensed rooms/linked outdoor areas
- The name and address of the holder of the licence
- The issue date and expiry date of the licence
- The name and qualification of the responsible person(s)
- The Registrar General will include the following details of your licence on the Gov.uk website https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/civil-marriages-and-partnerships-approved-premises-list:
- Venue name, address, telephone number
- Licence expiry date
- You will display the licence in a prominent position in the venue.
- You can now start advertising your business.
- You will direct couples to book their Registrars by going to our website, Ceremonies in East Sussex.
Statutory and local requirements
You need to identify specific room(s) or linked outdoor area(s) where weddings and civil partnerships take place. The outdoor area must be within the grounds of the licensed built premises.
East Sussex Registration must be satisfied that the premises are ‘seemly and dignified’, with regard to their primary use, situation, construction, state of repair, and suitable for marriages and formation of civil partnerships. The premises must be regularly available for marriages and civil partnerships.
Statutory conditions
The statutory conditions of the approved marriage and civil partnership premises licence are documented in
- Annex A - Schedule 1 - Requirements for the grant of approval of premises that are not religious premises
- Annex C - Schedule 2 - Conditions to be attached to grants of approval of premises that are not religious premises
- Annex E - Schedule 2B - Regulation 6(1)(a)
These conditions will be attached to your licence as well as the following:
You must
- Have all the necessary fire safety provisions required by East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service (https://www.esfrs.org/commercial-properties).
- Have all the necessary health and safety provisions required by HSE (https://www.hse.gov.uk/). It is the licence holder's responsibility to ensure the health and safety of East Sussex County Council's staff and ceremony attendees throughout their visit.
- Ensure that all linked outdoor areas to be licensed also adhere to the usual health and safety requirements (including any capacity approved through a fire risk assessment).
- Ensure that no other activities take place in the linked outdoor area at the same time as a ceremony to ensure that such activities will not call into question the approval of the location as seemly and dignified.
- Have public liability insurance throughout the licenced period.
- Appoint a Responsible Person to make sure all terms and conditions of the licence are followed. In the absence of the Responsible Person, an appropriately qualified deputy will be available.
- Provide the contact details of the Responsible Person as the main point of contact for East Sussex Registration.
- Make sure your premises can be inspected by East Sussex Registration at reasonable times.
Ceremonies
- Must only take place in the specified licensed areas.
- Must not have any religious content (for example music, readings and rituals).
- Must be accessible to the public.
The following additional licence conditions apply
They may be amended from time to time by East Sussex Registration.
- Civil marriage and civil partnership ceremonies must be conducted by East Sussex Registration.
- Couples should be advised to contact East Sussex Registration as soon as they have made a provisional booking with their venue. East Sussex Registration will try to accommodate the time and date requested but may offer a suitable alternative.
- The Responsible Person should notify attending registration staff of the fire evacuation procedures and how to call a First Aider.
- The licensed room and linked outdoor areas must have suitable lighting.
- The licensed room and linked outdoor area must have a minimum of one chair for the registrar, with a desk or table large enough to accommodate the marriage or civil partnership document.
- The Responsible Person is available on the premises for a minimum of one hour prior to and present throughout the proceedings.
- The number attending a ceremony must not exceed the agreed capacity, as shown on the venue licence certificate, supplied for display. This does not include East Sussex Registration and venue staff.
- The ceremony must remain open to the public, as required by law.
- Sources of ignition, such as candles are not permitted. Battery operated candles may be used.
- The ceremony room and linked outdoor area to be used should be set up and ready at least one hour before the agreed start time for the ceremony.
- Display the notice confirming the licence at public entrances for one hour before and during the ceremony. A notice must also be displayed at the entrance to any linked outdoor area.
- No food or drinks are sold or consumed in the specified area one hour before and during the ceremony. Water is permitted.
- Provide full access for those with disabilities. Where this is not possible, due to the age and construction of the building, this must be clearly communicated to couples intending to hold their ceremony on the premises.
- Provide a separate room to be used for the pre-ceremony questioning of the couple by the Registrar. Bedrooms are not appropriate for this confidential process.
- Provide clean and accessible toilet facilities for the use of the couple, any guests attending and registration staff.
- The person or people booking the premises must be told about any accessibility limitations that could affect entering or moving around the venue. They must also be told of any limits on the size of the ceremony party, based on the ceremony room’s size and the maximum capacity on the licence.
Special licence conditions
ESCC reserves the right to apply special licence conditions, in addition to those set out above, to any licence at any time as it considers necessary.
The licence may be revoked if these requirements are not met.
Outdoor ceremonies (linked outdoor areas)
Venues with a licensed linked outdoor area must have a suitable alternative space available and set up to accommodate the ceremony in the event of adverse weather conditions.
- The Responsible Person (or their Deputy) will liaise with the couple and registrars to decide if it is safe to proceed when adverse weather makes it difficult to conduct the ceremony and could pose a risk to safety. If the conditions are assessed as unsafe, an alternative covered, licensed area must be used.
- This could be an outdoor temporary covered structure/marquee within the linked outdoor areas, a currently approved permanent licensed structure in the grounds of the built premises or a currently approved room in the licensed premises itself.
- Ceremonies cannot take place with the legally required parties being split between a licensed room/structure and a linked outdoor area. The couple, two registrars and two witnesses must all be wholly inside a licensed room/structure, or wholly outside in a linked outdoor area.
- You may have to limit the number of guests at proceedings due to take place in an approved linked outdoor area to the number that you can safely accommodate in your alternative for inclement weather.
Planning permission
If you would like to apply for your premises to be used for the solemnisation of marriages and civil partnerships, you will need to get confirmation from your local District or Borough Council as well as the South Downs National Park Authority, depending on your location, to see if planning permission is also required.
If you are applying to licence linked outdoor area(s) and you are planning to erect a new outdoor structure for use in inclement weather, you should consult with your local planning department.
If you are unsure whether you require planning permission or would like to obtain pre-application planning advice, please see the relevant District or Borough Council page listed below:
Rother District Council
Pre-application advice – Rother District Council
Hastings Borough Council
Pre-application advice - Hasting Borough Council
Lewes and Eastbourne Councils
Pre-application advice - Lewes and Eastbourne Councils
Wealden District Council
Pre-application advice - Wealden District Council
South Downs National Park
Pre- application advice - South Downs National Park Authority
Venue licence fees
A licence to hold civil marriages and civil partnership ceremonies is valid for three years from the date of issue.
When we receive your completed application, we will contact you to arrange a BACS payment of the fee.
| Licence starting between 1 April 2026 and 31 March 2027 | |
|---|---|
| 3-year marriage and civil partnership venue licence | £2,495 |
| Additional ceremony room / outdoor space | £375 |
| Licence starting between 1 April 2027 and 31 March 2028 | |
|---|---|
| 3-year marriage and civil partnership venue licence | £2,590 |
| Additional ceremony room / outdoor space | £395 |
Before you apply
Make sure you are familiar with all the statutory and local requirements for licensing your venue.
You will need to confirm that no planning permission is necessary for the venue to hold marriage or civil partnership ceremonies on the premises.
You will not be able to submit your application without having the following.
Documents
When you apply you will need digital copies (PDFs, scans or photos) of:
- a plan of the premises (1:100 scale) clearly showing the proposed ceremony room(s), boundary of the land and any linked outdoor area(s) you wish to license. The location of the pre-ceremony interview room should also be included.
- public liability insurance
- most recent fire risk assessment
Contact details
You will also need to provide the contact details of:
- the applicant (the licence holder)
- the owner
- the Responsible Person (statutory role)
- the Deputies to the Responsible Person
- the person responsible for Health & Safety at the venue
Apply to license or renew a licence for a venue
The licence to hold civil marriages and civil partnership ceremonies at a venue is valid for 3 years from the date of issue.
If you are renewing your venue licence:
- We will invite you to renew your licence one calendar year before your current licence expires.
- You can apply to renew a licence, no more than 12 months and no less than 6 months before your current licence expires.
- Payment must be made no later than 3 months before your current licence expires, otherwise we will assume you are not re-licensing and will stop accepting new bookings for your venue.
- Use the normal application form below if you are renewing your licence.
If you need further advice, please email us at VenueLicensing@eastsussex.gov.uk :
- We can help you through the application process
- If you cannot use our online application form, we can provide the application form as a Word document.
Fees and how to pay
When we receive your completed application, we will contact you to arrange a BACS payment of the fee.
Changes to an existing licence
If you want to licence an additional room during your existing license, a new licence must be obtained through a fresh application. Email venuelicensing@eastsussex.gov.uk for guidance.
If any of the following change you must notify the Superintendent Registrar at venuelicensing@eastsussex.gov.uk:
- the licence holder's details
- the Responsible Person’s details
- appointment of a new Responsible Person
- alterations to the premises, for example name, address, layout or use
- description or changes to the licensed room(s)/linked outdoor area(s)
This ensures that East Sussex County Council can confirm the venue continues to meet all legal and safety requirements.
If a licence application is refused or revoked
Refusal of an application to license
If approval is not granted to an application, the applicant will be notified in writing of that decision, the reasons why, and how they may appeal against that decision should they wish to.
Revoking a license
East Sussex County Council may revoke a licence if:
- the holder of the licence has not complied with one or more of the conditions attached to it
- the use or structure of the premises has changed so that the premises are no longer suitable for ceremonies
If East Sussex County Council decides to revoke a licence, it will issue a written notice to the licence holder confirming that the licence has been withdrawn. No refund of fees will be made if a licence is revoked.
The licence holder may seek a review of the decision to revoke a licence by writing to the Proper Officer:
Proper Officer for Registration
Crowborough Register Office
Hookstead
Goldsmith's Avenue
Crowborough
East Sussex
TN6 1RH
Revocation directed by the Registrar General
The Registrar General for England and Wales may instruct East Sussex County Council to revoke a licence if they believe that laws relating to ceremonies held on the Approved Premises have been breached.
Before issuing such a direction, the Registrar General will:
- write to the licence holder explaining the grounds on which revocation is being proposed
- provide the licence holder with at least 14 days to submit written representations.
After considering any representations received, if the Registrar General decides that the licence should be revoked, East Sussex County Council will be directed to do so.
East Sussex County Council must then revoke the licence with immediate effect and notify the licence holder. No refund of fees will be made if a licence is revoked.
Duty to Notify Couples
Once a licence has been revoked, the licence holder must immediately inform any couples who have booked ceremonies at the premises that the licence is no longer in place.
