Couples give churches the cold shoulder

Fewer couples are opting for the traditional church wedding, new figures show.

Less than half of the couples-to-be surveyed by WeddingChaos.co.uk were planning a church wedding, with increased secularisation seen as fuelling the trend.

The convenience and flexibility afforded by non-traditional venues was also blamed for churches' falling popularity, as well as continued reluctance within the Anglican Church to relax the rules.

Two years ago the Church considered relaxing the rules on church weddings, with couples presently only allowed to marry in the parish where one of them lives or worships.

However, the Church has failed to reach agreement on a more liberal policy, with church attendance continuing to dwindle in the meantime.

More than a quarter of the 1,200 couples surveyed were planning to marry in one of the thousands of venues licensed to perform civil weddings.

The convenience of such venues appeared attractive to many, with guests able to watch the exchange of vows, enjoy the reception and tuck into a wedding breakfast all in the same location.

The future Mrs Dale told the website: "The reception venue we have chosen is more than 20 miles away from the church where we would have got married.

"It's a long way for guests to hike especially if they don't have cars so it made sense to get married at the venue. Plus the licensed venue is really nice."

Some 14 per cent of couples are turning their back on the UK altogether, while 12 per cent are opting for a simple service in a registry office.

However, wedding-watchers are not expecting church attendance to die out completely, with some couples always preferring the traditional option.

Explaining her and her husband's decision to opt for a church wedding, bride-to-be Beverly Spencer said they were "getting married in church because we are both devout Catholics."