Certification and Registration of Religious Buildings for Worship and Marriage
Registering a building for worship
Under the provisions of the Places of Worship Registration Act 1855, a place of meeting for religious worship may, if the congregation wish, be so certified to the Registrar General. The certification is arranged by applying to the Superintendent Registrar in the district where the building is situated. This excludes churches or chapels of the Church of England, unless it shares a church building with another religious denomination.
You will need two forms 76, which can be obtained from the Superintendent Registrar at your local register office. The forms can be signed by anyone who can represent the congregation i.e a minister, proprietor or trustee. When the forms have been completed, you should send them to the Superintendent Registrar with:
- A floor plan of the building. It does not need to be professionally drawn or to scale but must show all the rooms, doorways, floors and staircases;
- An average weekly timetable showing how the building will be used. This must include all activities, not just those run by the congregation; and
- a cheque or postal order made payable to Bracknell FBC covering the statutory fee of £28
Registering a building as a place of marriage
To apply for this the building must also be certified as a place of worship. (If the building is not already certified, the two applications can be made at the same time.)
You will need two Forms 78, which can be obtained from the Superintendent Registrar. These must be signed by 20 householders who regard the building as their usual place of worship. A householder is any person who resides at an address and has either sole or joint responsibility for that household. The forms must be countersigned by a trustee of, or proprietor of, the actual building. A statutory fee of £120 is payable by cheque or postal order made payable to Bracknell FBC.
Once the information is received, the information is sent to the General Register Office (GRO) for authorisation. When the GRO certify a building for worship and marriage, the Superintendent Registrar is then required to advertise the new place of worship in the local newspaper and the London Gazette. The applicant is then sent a certificate confirming the certification and registration for marriages.
General information
If the place of worship has wholly ceased to be used by the congregation on whose behalf it was certified, the present occupier should give notice of disuse to the Superintendent Registrar by completing form 77, which is available free of charge from the Register Office.
If the building is taken over by a completely new congregation they should re-certify the building by applying for forms 76 and 78 as outlined above.
Any change in description, or change of address of the building should be notified to the Superintendent Registrar. She will also be able to advise about whether re-certification is necessary if the certified place of religious worship is rebuilt.
Please contact us on 01344 352052 or email: registrars@bracknell-forest.gov.uk to request the required forms or for further information on this service. Information can also be obtained by visiting www.gro.gov.uk/Images/CertRegBuild_tcm69-3545.pdf
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