Do You Have an Order of Service at a Civil Ceremony?

As most civil weddings don't have hymns, you may be wondering if you need orders of service at your wedding.

The short answer is no, you don't. Orders of service can be expensive, especially if you're having a large wedding, and can be seen as a bit of a waste of money if your ceremony is short.

However, they do make a beautiful accessory for your wedding ceremony, and can be really helpful, too.

Here are some things you may like to include:

Front Page

The front of your order of service only needs a few key details. We recommend to include the names of the couple, the place of marriage, and the date.

You can include any other significant details on the front. Get as creative as you wish!

A Timeline

Why not introduce your bridal party with a timeline of who's walking down the isle?

There's no set order for a civil ceremony, but you may want to copy the tradition from a religious ceremony.

Here is a standard order:

Grandparents, escorted by ushers

Parents of the Groom

Mother of the bride, escorted by usher

Groom

Bridesmaids and Groomsmen

Best man and maid of honour

Ring Bearer

Flower Girl

Father of the Bride and the Bride

Of course, you can mix this up as much as you want to - it's your day after all.

You may also want to include a more detailed description about members of the bridal party. Mention their relation to the couple, and their role on the day.

Readings

Many civil ceremonies do contain readings. These can be poems that are of particular significance to the couple, readings from your favourite book, or anything else.

In your wedding ceremony, you may want to have up to four different readings, so this will take up a lot of space on your Order of Service.

Don't forget to include who the readings are read by.

Signing of the register

Make sure to note at what point in the ceremony the signing of the register is.

Music

Whilst civil ceremonies don't have religious hymns, you may want to play music on your special day.

Note what the song playing is at each point in the ceremony.

You may also want to mention the significance of any songs and why you chose them, e.g. 'this is our favourite song'.

Thank Yous

Finally, end your order of service with a thoughtful thank-you message to your guests for attending.

You may also want to write a message for those who have played a special role in your ceremony.

If you have order of service or not, its completely up to you! We think if you like them and you can afford them, then you should go for it. But if not, then don't worry too much about it, many guests will forget about them entirely.

We hope you have enjoyed this blog, and have found it useful. Don't forget to check out our other blogs.