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Catholic Diocese of Portsmouth

Registered Charity number 1199568

ARE YOU NEW TO THE PARISH?

First of all, welcome!

We hope you will be very happy at one of our wonderful, welcoming parishes 

Our Lady of Mercy & St Joseph, Lymington or

St Anne's, Brockenhurt or

St Francis of Assisi, Milford on sea.

Please email the office to introduce yourself and we will send you a GDPR compliant New Parishioner Form.

Office : Telephone  01590 676696

Email: office@lymbrockmil.org.uk

WEDDINGS

Congratulations on your engagement!

For all enquiries about weddings : please email the office with your details and Fr David will get back to you to arrange a date and time. In the meantime here is some information about our 3 parishes: Lymington, Brockenhurst and Milford on Sea.

Should you be able to celebrate your wedding in one of our churches we will do our part to make it one of your happiest days.

GENERAL INFORMATION:

There are three Catholic churches in this area:

Our Lady of Mercy & St Joseph, 132 High Street, Lymington, Hampshire, SO41 9AQ

St Anne’s, Rhinefield Rd, Brockenhurst, SO42 7SR

St Francis of Assisi, Park Lane, Milford-on-Sea, SO41 0PT

The contact information for all three churches is: Tel. 01590-676696

Email: lymbrockmil@portsmouthdiocese.org.uk.

Webpage: www.nfwp.org.uk

CHURCH PREPARATION
You & your partner will need to go through marriage preparation in your own parish. You should contact your local Catholic Church, ideally one year before or at least not later than 6 months before your wedding, (or as soon as possible, if your wedding is less than 6 months away). If the priest or person(s) preparing you for your married life is not also conducting the service it would be courteous to offer a small gratuity for their work on your behalf.

You will need to agree the Order of Service with the priest/deacon conducting your wedding.
You will need to decide whether you want a Nuptial Mass (Wedding plus Mass) or a simple Wedding Service. A rehearsal will be required prior to the wedding, usually the day before.

It may be possible to do all the church preparation here but your own parish priest will need to give express, written permission for this and for the marriage to take place outside of your parish of residence.

CIVIL & LEGAL REQUIREMENTS

You will also need to get your Civil Marriage Schedule from the Registry office. Contact your local Registry office for information about what is required and what their fees are. You can do this from a year before your marriage date. It is preferable to complete this process by about 3 months before your wedding. Be aware that if you have no residency qualifications in the local area you may have to fulfil a minimum attendance requirement to make a credible claim that the church in which you wish to marry is your usual place of worship.

DO NOT BOOK YOUR RECEPTION VENUE BEFORE YOU KNOW WHETHER THE CHURCH IS AVAILABLE AND BEFORE YOU KNOW THAT YOU CAN LEGALLY MARRY IN THE CHURCH.

After a meeting with the Registra they will give you a Marriage Schedule. It should be handed over, in person, to the priest/deacon who will be conducting your service. It will be kept in the church safe and used by the civil witness/Authorised Person for the registering of your marriage. The marriage cannot legally take place without the Marriage Schedule.

We no longer give you a Marriage Certificate at the end of the service. You have to apply to the Registry office where you received your Marriage Schedule.

The church will provide an Authorised Person who will complete the Marriage Schedule & Parish Register at the time of your wedding on behalf of the Registrar. The bride & groom sign  in their own family names. Two adult civil witnesses chosen by the couple are also required to sign, as does the Authorised Person.

• REQUIRED FEES
  Use of the church building: £250
• Fee payable to the Authorised Person: £50
• Gratuity for the Officiating Minister: at the couple’s discretion.
• Organist’s Fee: This varies between £80 - £120 approximately. The church can source an organist if one is required.
• All fees should be paid before the wedding takes place.
• Information on how to pay the fees will be given when appropriate.

FLOWERS

Until further notice our churches cannot offer to do flower arranging. Other options are to engage a professional florist or to enlist the help of family associates.

Whatever your decision regarding the celebration of your wedding we wish you every happiness and blessing for your life together.

BAPTISM

Congratulations on the birth of your child!

For enquiries about Baptisms please contact the office for a Baptism form and to arrange a date.

Infant Baptisms are usually at OLMSJ, Lymington at 12.30pm on a Sunday. If Baptisms are requested at St Anne's, Brockenhurst or St Francis of Assisi, Milford on Sea please speak to Fr David.

There is no charge for a Baptism certificates which will be sent  out on request. 

FUNERALS

Please accept our condolences for your loss.

In the first instance please discuss your requirements for the funeral with the Funeral Director who will then contact the Parish Priest, Father David, to agree the date,time and place for the funeral. Fr David will then contact you to discuss the Order of Service.  

GOING INTO HOSPITAL?

If you, or a family member, are going into hospital, please let your priest, Fr David, know as soon as possible in case you/they require ‘Anointing of the Sick’ before being admitted.

If you are going into Lymington hospital, or a family member in hospital requests a priest, please contact Fr David.

If you are going into Southampton General or Princess Anne hospital:

The Catholic Chaplain is no longer automatically told there are Catholics on the ward, so you must request a visit.

The Chaplaincy Centre

Email: chaplaincy@uhs.nhs.uk

For non-urgent requests, ring 023 8120 8517. If no one is available to take your call, please leave a message on the answerphone stating your name, the ward you are on and that you are a Catholic. They will try to respond to your request within 24 hours unless otherwise negotiated with you.

Urgent requests are usually only referred by staff, and these are made via the switchboard. They will need to ask the operator to page the Catholic duty chaplain.

Visit:

The Chaplaincy Centre, D level, Centre Block, Southampton General Hospital