Welcoming children to a wedding

Vicars are used to welcoming and including families with children of all ages, so don’t worry about children leaving their seats or making noise – the Vicar can advise and reassure the bride and groom on all of this.

Here are some suggestions to help children fully enjoy the wedding service:

• Children often find a wedding fascinating, so help them to get a good view – they may stand out in the aisle, or, with a parent’s help to keep them safe, even stand on their seat to watch.
• Be ready to answer questions from children about what is happening in each part of the service.
• Sometimes churches have special areas where children can play, or have hand-outs or other activity sheets for younger children to help them find out more about the church and the wedding.
• Make sure children have service sheets too, so they can follow what is happening.
• Do check ahead of the wedding whether there are practical facilities, like toilets and a crèche, as some rural churches might have limited options. There may not always be room for buggies in smaller churches, so it’s worth finding out beforehand.
• If your child has a particular role, such as being a bridesmaid, page boy, ring-bearer or are doing a reading, it’s important they go to the wedding rehearsal, so they can feel reassured and confident about what they need to do on the day.
• It’s also a good idea to take them to church beforehand, especially if they have never been before, so they can begin to find out more.