Please see the script below, with the words in italics that the couple will repeat after the registrar:
[WELCOME]
Good morning/afternoon. On behalf of my colleague (Registrar 2’s name), and myself (Registrar 1’s name), I would like to welcome you to (ceremony venue) on the occasion of the renewal of vows between (Partner 1’s name) and (Partner 2’s name).
Today, (Partner 1’s name) and (Partner 2’s name) will celebrate their commitment to each other with a renewal of their marriage/civil partnership promises.
Marriage/civil partnership enables two people to share their strengths and their weaknesses, their hopes and their fears, their desires and aspirations, their doubts and disappointments. It is an opportunity for mutual support, which can enhance all of life’s experiences – sorrows are halved, joys are doubled.
Great love involves great risk. A good marriage/civil partnership must be created, nurtured with daily care. It must be a relationship in which each tries to bring out the best in the other. A marriage/civil partnership is cherishing and forgiving, it settles for less than perfection, and compromises over the daily irritations in order to work towards common goals.
Today (Partner 1’s name) and (Partner 2’s name) are saying ‘thank you’ for the past (number) years for their time together. They are reaffirming that their marriage/civil partnership means more to them than ever and they will grow even closer as they look forward to the future together.
[1ST READING (OPTIONAL)]
We welcome (Reader 1’s name) forward now with the first reading.
[VOWS]
Family and friends, we have now come to the heart of this ceremony – the renewing of vows of two people who love one another.
(Partner 1’s name) and (Partner 2’s name), you have gathered about you those to whom you are closest. You have invited them here to receive their encouragement and support, and to celebrate with you at this special time.
(Partner 1’s name), please repeat after me:
I ask you now, in the presence of this company: will you seek to trust the ebbs and flows of your love, to offer your love without conditions, having faith that it will always return and understanding that its nature may change?
(Partner 1’s name): I will
(Partner 2’s name), please repeat after me:
I ask you now, in the presence of this company: will you seek to trust the ebbs and flows of your love, to offer your love without conditions, having faith that it will always return and understanding that its nature may change?
(Partner 2’s name): I will
[VOWS TO A CHILD/CHILDREN (OPTIONAL)]
Marriage/civil partnership is one way in which families provide the stability in which children can be nurtured into independent adulthood.
(Partner 1’s name) and (Partner 2’s name)’s relationship has been enriched by (child/children’s names), who has/have benefited from their continuing love for each other.
(Partner 1’s name) and (Partner 2’s name) hope that their child/children will always flourish, secure in the knowledge of their lifelong commitment to each other.
(Partner 1’s name), please repeat after me:
(Partner 2’s name), as I vow to continue to love and support you for the rest of my days, I also pledge to continue to support your/our child/children in achieving their dreams, to give them guidance when needed and to freely give them my unconditional love. Together, we will continue to build the foundation of our family.
(Partner 2’s name), please repeat after me:
(Partner 1’s name), as I vow to continue to love and support you for the rest of my days, I also pledge to continue to support your/our child/children in achieving their dreams, to give them guidance when needed and to freely give them my unconditional love. Together, we will continue to build the foundation of our family.
[2ND READING (OPTIONAL)]
We welcome (Reader 2’s name) forward now with the second reading.
[PERSONAL VOWS (OPTIONAL)]
(Partner 1’s name) and (Partner 2’s name) have chosen to write personal vows to each other to express their continued commitment to each other. (Partner 1’s name) and (Partner 2’s name), please read your vows to each other.
[RINGS (OPTIONAL)]
A ring is a circle of wholeness, perfect in form, without beginning or end. (Partner 1’s name) and (Partner 2’s name) will now re-dedicate the rings they exchanged (number) years ago/ give each other new rings today. Who has the rings?
(Partner 1’s name), please repeat after me:
I give you this ring, as a token of our marriage/civil partnership, and a symbol of my enduring love.
(Partner 2’s name), please repeat after me:
I give you this ring, as a token of our marriage/civil partnership, and a symbol of my enduring love.
[GUESTS’ VOWS (OPTIONAL)
I am now going to ask all of you assembled here to lend your verbal support to this couple, by responding with ‘we will’ to the following question:
Will you, the family and friends, fully endorse, have faith in and give your lasting support to (Partner 1’s name) and (Partner 2’s name) who stand before us here today?
Guests: We will
[3RD READING (OPTIONAL)]
We welcome (Reader 3’s name) forward now with the final reading.
[SIGNING OF COMMEMORATIVE CERTIFICATE]
(Partner 1’s name) and (Partner 2’s name) have asked (Witness 1’s name) and (Witness 2’s name) to witness their renewal of marriage/civil partnership vows and I ask them to please come forward to sign the certificate of this ceremony with (Partner 1’s name) and (Partner 2’s name).
(Partner 1’s name) and (Partner 2’s name), I now offer you this certificate as a lasting reminder of this ceremony.
[CONCLUSION OF CEREMONY]
When we cherish something, we hold it close to our hearts, and we value it above all else.
(Partner 1’s name) and (Partner 2’s name), on your wedding/civil partnership day, you promised to love and support each other through good times and bad. The fact that you are here today is a testament to the strength of your love for one another. Our wish for you is that your love continues to grow and strengthen, and that today’s ceremony and celebrations mark the next chapter of your life together, giving you many more happy and precious memories.
It is with pleasure that I conclude the ceremony of renewing the vows of marriage/civil partnership that joined you and binds you as husband/wife and husband/wife/ civil partners.
[CONGRATULATE COUPLE AS THEY HAVE ASKED TO BE DECLARED ON THE PRE-CEREMONY ORGANISER]