10 Things You Need To Know

With the majority of our married survey respondents agreeing to have children at their wedding, this is something you really should consider. One respondent said it “Would be weird if there weren’t kids at a wedding” and another said “A wedding isn’t a wedding without children there”.

However, this is a personal choice, as one respondent says “I think it depends on the day itself. If it’s a very formal occasion kids can create havoc and it can be stressful for their parents and other guests but if you are having a relaxed day it’s great to spend time with younger people who get to celebrate as a family”.

Very few weddings get a 100% attendance rate. If you are having a wedding with around 75 – 100 guests, you should plan for around 5 – 10% of people to pull out at some point and not attend. One of our survey respondents said “Some guests pulled out late which is annoying because then you have to either invite people late so they know they were a last choice or have empty seats”.

Another respondent even had an important member of their bridal party drop out, as they said “My bridesmaid let me down and didn’t turn up”. Be prepared for any eventuality and don’t panic if someone does pull out, just let the venue know and they can move things around so there aren’t any empty seats.

For many couples, deciding who to invite to the wedding can be one of the most difficult and stressful parts of the planning. Couples don’t want to miss anyone out, but they also don’t want to invite anyone who might cause friction or act inappropriately. Try not to stress about your guest list too much. If there are people you cannot invite due to budget restraints, just tell them and if they are a real friend, they will understand.

The reason why most couples start planning their wedding at least a year in advance is because a lot of the planning involves waiting on other people. One engaged person who answered our survey said that one of the issues they were having with their wedding planning was ‘Caterers and entertainment confirming quotes', while another said 'Getting quotes and bookings' was an issue for them. This is why it’s a good idea to get all your vendor bookings done early.

Sometimes couples can overthink the entertainment, worrying that their guests will be sitting twiddling their thumbs and getting bored. However, in most cases guests can quite easily entertain themselves. Nearly all of our survey respondents stated the three magical ingredients to keep guests entertained; music, alcohol and food! With these three things, you can be pretty sure that your guests will keep themselves entertained and have a great time.

This one might seem obvious, but many couples find themselves too nervous to eat anything before their wedding. This is a huge mistake though, as having something to eat can help to settle your stomach and prevent you from feeling light headed. You might also decide to have a glass of champagne before the ceremony to help with the nerves, so breakfast is even more important to ensure you don’t get too drunk!

A survey conducted in 2011 revealed that only 47% of couples took out a wedding insurance policy in 2011. This is despite the fact that the average cost of a wedding insurance policy in 2011 was as low as £24.23! The value of your wedding insurance is there in case something goes wrong, with weddings being such expensive events, it can certainly be worth taking out a policy for peace of mind.

According to the Office of National Statistics, August is the most popular month for people to get married and Saturdays are the most popular day to get married. If you want a summer weekend wedding, you’ll need to get your bookings done even earlier than normal. Alternatively, you could opt to have your wedding during the least popular month which is January on the least popular day which is Wednesday, which will most likely save you some money.

Couples need to be prepared for any eventuality as things often don’t go entirely to plan when it comes to weddings. You might want to have a backup plan just in case something does go wrong or be prepared to carry on with your plans regardless. One of our survey respondents told us about her experience of something going wrong, as she “Had to postpone (the) wedding due to a family bereavement then partner had to take a pay cut at work so we were worried about paying for everything after deposits had already been paid”.

One thing you really need to be prepared for if you are planning a fairly big event for your wedding day is that it will cost a pretty penny. Research suggests that the average cost of a wedding day in the UK is £12,059, with the biggest costs being the catering (on average £2,552) and the venue (on average £1,517).