We would love to welcome you or your child for Baptism at St Mary’s if you live in our parish, or worship with us regularly, or if you have a special connection with us. Please get in touch with us through the enquiries form on the contact tab.
Baptisms normally take place on the second Sunday of each month at 12.00 noon, although there is also the option to have a baptism during our 10.00am Parish Eucharist, and we will be happy to explore these options with you.
St Mary’s is one of the larger Church of England Churches in the area and can accommodate 250 people. We have experience in hosting large baptisms and have space on the church drive for about 30 cars. Further parking is normally available on the road on Lodge Hill Road and other surrounding streets.
St Mary's Church is a traditional Victorian Church building which is very popular for weddings. It is set back from the Bristol Road up a beautiful and peaceful driveway. The simplest way to make enquiries about arranging a wedding is to fill in the enquiries form on our contact tab. You can be married in our church if you live within our parish boundary. Even if you don't live in our parish, you may still be able to be married in our church if you have what is called a 'Qualifying Connection', or by establishing a ‘Qualifying Connection’ by worshipping with us regularly. Do come and talk to us about this if you would like to be married at St Mary’s, we are happy to talk you through the booking process and the fees.
When booking a wedding, we will need to see evidence of your age, name, nationality and address, so you will need to bring your passport and a recent utility bill (originals, not copies). We need to hold (securely) a photocopy of these. If you are not a UK passport holder, there are a few extra steps needed before you can get married, so please allow enough time. We also welcome enquiries from those who have been married before.
The church has a fine organ, and an organist, as well as a choir. We also have a team of bell ringers who love to ring for weddings.
If you have had a civil wedding, whether your marriage has taken place in the UK or abroad, you may like to dedicate your marriage to God in church soon afterwards. The Church of England offers a service called a ‘Service of Prayer and Dedication’, where your marriage is blessed in church.
It is not a marriage service, so banns are not required and there is no exchange of rings or the need to sign the official marriage paperwork during the service.
It can, however, still be designed to have a similar feel to a wedding with hymns, readings, flowers and even bells if you would like that, or it can be a smaller low-key service. The service itself has no statutory fee (because it is not a legal service) but there may be some local costs, such as bells and the services of an organist, which would be charged at our local rate.
If you would like to explore this, do contact us and one of the clergy can meet with you to discuss it.
The death of a loved one is a difficult time. Our clergy and our bereavement team would be pleased to talk with you if this would help, and also to pray for you. We remember in our prayers each Sunday the families of those whose funerals have taken place here at St Mary’s.
St Mary's is one of the larger Church of England Churches in the area and accommodates 250 people. We are happy to host funerals, large or small, and there are facilities to play recorded music from a CD or MP3 player, and to livestream a service. Our organist is available to play for funeral services. Our clergy are also very willing to take funerals at local crematoria. Please do ask us.
Interment of Ashes
Please note that the church yard has been closed for burials since the start of the last century. Under Churchyard Regulations (2006) the scattering of ashes is not permitted, but we do have a dedicated area, our garden of remembrance, available for the interment (burial) of the ashes of those who lived in the parish or were worshipping members of our congregation. For any enquiries, please contact our Vicar, who will also be able to advise you of the Churchyard Regulations concerning memorials, and all associated fees.
Click here to download the Church of England Birmingham Churchyard regulations
We have a preferred stonemason whose company know what is required:
Bellamy Waterhouse & Co
Porters Way
Bordesley Green
Birmingham
B9 5RR
Telephone: 0121 7710747
Email: sales@waterhouseandco.co.uk
Website: www.waterhouseandco.co.uk
You may find the Light a Candle website helpful.
The Church of England provides resources for Memorial Services, designed for use in church several weeks after a Funeral service has taken place. This can be helpful if you, or other members of the family, have not been able to attend the funeral of your loved one. Please contact us if you would like to discuss holding a memorial service for your loved one at St Mary’s, we would be pleased to help.
Annual Service of Remembering
We hold an annual service of remembering in early November when we remember particularly all those who have died in the preceding year. Many find this service helpful, and details will appear in the autumn on our News and Events page.
St Mary's Church
925 Bristol Road
Selly Oak
Birmingham
B29 6ND
Charity Registration Number: 1137205
