CHESHIRE East Council's registrars have been voted best in the North West for the fourth year in a row for the quality of their marriage ceremonies.

They retained their crown for 'best ceremony provider' at the regional wedding awards held recently at The Mere, Knutsford and hosted by County Brides Magazine.

The Crewe-based registration service was also praised for the way it adapted to Covid, having to quickly rearrange dates to suit couples and deliver a seamless service.

Staff arranged more than 1,500 ceremonies, occasionally bringing the happy day forward owing to the disruption caused by Covid lockdowns and isolation.

A further 1,000 couples will be saying 'I do' between now and 1 April, in ceremonies supervised by the council's registrars at one of the 80 approved premises now licensed for weddings in the borough.

Andrew Foster, lead ceremony coordinator, said: "We are extremely proud of the team, who have worked so hard during a very challenging and difficult year.

"In addition to ensuring that our couples received the best possible attention, we also saw an increase in the registration of births and, sadly, far more deaths than usual, due to Covid."

Borough council leader Cllr Sam Corcoran said: "To win this award four years in a row is a truly amazing achievement.

"I am also proud of the fact that Cheshire East continues to offer some outstanding locations for marriage ceremonies and that our registrars can put the icing on the cake for so many couples by delivering a highly-professional service."

The registrations service is recruiting and has more than 2,000 ceremonies already booked for next year.

Andrew added: "We need more team members to help with the demand. We are recruiting and anyone who feels they have the personality and confidence to conduct a marriage service, as well as meeting all our other requirements, should contact us via the Cheshire East Council website."