St Edmund Hall first to offer civil weddings

16 May 2005

St Edmund Hall has become the first Oxford University college to be granted a licence to perform civil marriages by Oxfordshire County Council. The licence was presented to the college at a ceremony on Friday 13 May.

Marriage services and blessings are already performed in several of Oxford’s college chapels and many of the colleges provide facilities for wedding receptions, but St Edmund Hall is the first to be granted a licence to perform civil marriage ceremonies. Though it was only incorporated as a college in 1957, St Edmund Hall’s history dates back to the thirteenth century, and it is the sole survivor of the medieval halls which first provided accommodation and tuition for scholars of the University.

The chair of Oxfordshire County Council, Councillor Shareen Karmali, presented the licence to perform civil marriages to Geoffrey Bourne-Taylor, Bursar of St Edmund Hall. She said: ‘I am delighted to be able to present St Edmund Hall with a licence to perform civil weddings. It is a beautiful venue, steeped in history and unique in the fact that it is the very first Oxford college to be licensed in this way.

‘I am sure that couples from all over the country, and even the world, will consider choosing this very special place for their wedding especially if they have connections with the college’, she added.

Receiving the licence, Mr Bourne-Taylor said: ‘It is fitting that St Edmund Hall, which is the oldest surviving Educational Hall within the University, should be the first college to be licensed to have civil ceremonies performed within its precincts. The photogenic buildings, the delightful Quadrangle and the general ambiance of the college lend themselves as the perfect setting for a special occasion.’

The college has already received several enquiries from couples interested in getting married at St Edmund Hall this summer. To enquire about a civil wedding ceremony at the college call 01865 279006.