When will weddings be allowed after lockdown?

Small weddings *might* be able to happen as soon as June
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The UK was plunged into lockdown on March 23, and with it all weddings were banned, causing heartache for couples who’d been planning and looking forward to their big day and severe financial stress for all those working in the wedding industry.

Ahead of the complete lockdown, the Church of England had said weddings could take place with a maximum of five people, including the bride and groom and wedding officiator, leaving space for just the two witnesses.

But what now?

On Monday Boris Johnson laid out his road map for getting the UK safely out of lockdown with modifications to existing measures including a lightening of rules to allow people to sunbathe in the park and to meet one person from outside their household as long as it was outdoors and at a social distance of two metres.

Many couples will have been listening intently for any mention of a hint at when weddings could possibly kick off again. Talking to BBC Radio 4 on Monday, justice secretary Robert Buckland acknowledged the lack of clarity around weddings, saying he was giving a “lot of anxious consideration to the effect of the potential changes as to what we can do with regard marriage ceremonies.”

At the moment on the government's site Gov.uk it simply states: “You cannot get married or register a civil partnership at the moment because of coronavirus (COVID-19). If you’ve already booked a civil ceremony, contact the register office. This page will be updated when the situation changes.”

But there is a glimmer hope for couples eager to say 'I do.'

If all goes to plan and the relaxing of the current lockdown restrictions doesn’t lead to an increase in the rate of R, small weddings might be allowed to take place from next month.

Part of the 51-page document released on Monday states that from June 1, officials are "examining how to enable people to gather in slightly larger groups to better facilitate small weddings".

Elsewhere, in step three of the plan, it says that from July 4 at the earliest, places of worship might be reopened provided they can maintain social distancing.

A quick look at how other countries are approaching post-lockdown weddings might hold some clues as to what the UK can expect. In Ireland, small weddings with just family and close friends will be allowed from July 20; in Spain, as of May 25 weddings with a ‘limited’ number of guests will resume but that varies from province to province.

With health secretary Matt Hancock saying that summer holidays abroad are unlikely to be possible this year, couples who had planned nuptials in places like Italy, France and Spain will unfortunately probably have to postpone or cancel. For those willing to have small, socially distanced weddings, in the UK, there’s still a glimmer of hope.

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