New Register Office opens at the Civic Centre

Three marriages and a civil partnership have already taken place in the new Oak Room in the Civic Centre. It opened in March and is the perfect size for a registrar to perform statutory marriages and civil partnerships with the couple and their two witnesses.

The room will hold ceremonies at the Civic Centre on the first Tuesday of each month.

Ceremonies will still take place at the Town Hall in Blagrave Street, in a room that can seat up to 47 people or the concert hall that can accommodate 700 people. These are available every day of the week, including weekends.

There are also approved venues across Reading which are licensed for marriages and civil partnerships. Find out more about the approved venues.

The Registration Service has its own area in the Civic Centre. It is a new suite of private rooms with two waiting areas and a check-in service. There is a reception area where documents can be collected, submitted and payments can be made. It has its own entrance on Bridge Street - more information on finding the entrance.

The Registration Service provides the formal registration of births, deaths, and stillbirths, as well as re-registration of births after marriage of natural parents, or to add the natural father. It also takes notices of marriage and civil partnerships and offers private citizenship ceremonies.

Replacement or additional certificates can also be ordered through the website as well as commemorative certificates and wallets to keep them in to celebrate a marriage or civil partnership, or the arrival of a new baby.

Reading Registration Service registers around 5,000 births, 2,500 deaths and conducts around 400 ceremonies every year. 

The Registration Service is open from 9am to 5pm Monday to Friday, except on a Wednesday when opening is at 10.15am to allow for staff training.

Baby change facilities are only available in the Civic Centre main reception in Simmonds Street.  There is no access to the Civic Centre main reception or any other part of the building if visiting the Registration Service.

Visitor parking is unavailable at the Civic Centre. It is recommended visitors use the nearby parking bays in Fobney Street and the Oracle Shopping Centre or get public transport into the town centre. The nearest blue badge spaces are in St Mary’s Butts.