weddings
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Receptions are banned as post-lockdown wedding rules are revealed

Sad news for the father of the bride, too

With lockdown easing this coming weekend, weddings have been given the go-ahead.

However, there are a strict list of rules that any would-be brides and grooms must stick to.

PM Boris Johnson has given permission for weddings in England to go ahead from Saturday (July 4).

weddings
Weddings will look different post-lockdown (Credit: Pexels)

However, they will look different from weddings pre-coronavirus.

First of all, the happy couple are pretty limited on numbers.

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No more than 30 people are allowed at the wedding, which could cause arguments over who does and doesn’t receive a coveted invite.

This includes the couple, witnesses, officiants and guests, and staff not employed by the venue, which may include photographers, security or caterers.

When it comes to ceremonies, they will be short and pretty formal.

No singing or shouting will be allowed. This raises the risk of contracting coronavirus via airborne droplets.

Singing and receptions will be banned (Credit: Pexels)

Couples are requested to use pre-recorded music or the church organ as part of their service instead of employing a live singer.

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For the exchanging of rings, hands “should be washed before and after”.

The rings themselves “should be handled by as few people as possible”.

Social distancing at weddings

People from different households will be urged to maintain a social distance of 1m plus.

Precautions should be put in place to minimise contact and ensure the timeframe is as short as possible.

The guidance states this “may require marriages or civil partnerships to be adapted to remove practices that would otherwise have brought people into contact with one another, unless required for the marriage or civil partnership to be legally binding”.

It adds that “where this is the case, precautions should be put in place to minimise contact and ensure the timeframe is as short as possible”.

Father of the bride’s role

The news will come as a blow to many brides-to-be. It means unless the father of the bride lives with his daughter, he won’t be able to walk her down the aisle arm-in-arm.

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The father of the bride’s role has also changed (Credit: Unsplash)

Ceremonies should be “kept as short as reasonably possible” and limited to parts that make the marriage legally binding.

Receptions banned

When it comes to the post-wedding party, they’ve been cancelled.

The guidance reads: “Any receptions that typically follow or accompany marriages or civil partnerships are strongly advised not to take place.”

Wedding dress fittings

Dress fittings ahead of the wedding have also changed.

The bride-to-be now has to wear a face mask for all appointments.

Dresses are sanitised or quarantined for 72 hours after being tried on, too.

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Nancy Brown
Associate Editor

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