Civil weddings are continuing to beat religious services as the marriage ceremony of choice in Scotland, with latest figures showing higher numbers for the third year running.

Civil weddings are continuing to beat religious services as the marriage ceremony of choice in Scotland, with latest figures showing higher numbers for the third year running.

Latest statistics from the registrar general yesterday revealed that 52% of weddings last year were civil ceremonies, compared with 48% that were religious.

The numbers are up on both 2006, when 51% of unions were civil celebrations, and 2005, when numbers first crept over the 50% mark.

Experts said that the growing increase reflects the impact of changes in the law with the 2002 Marriage Scotland Act lifting the restriction limiting civil ceremonies to registry offices. Since then couples who did not want a religious service have been allowed to wed anywhere, from castles to the great outdoors.

As a result more than one-quarter of all weddings last year - nearly 8000 of around 30,000 - were civil ceremonies held in the close to 800 new, approved venues that have opened up in the country.

The Church of Scotland, which was the most popular type of wedding until the 1980s, said it was disappointed at the growing trend.

But it welcomed the news that the overall number of couples choosing to marry had remained stable.

Announcing the figures yesterday, Registrar General for Scotland Duncan Macniven said: "What we are seeing is a good example of a change in legislation unlocking a change in people's behaviour. Before 2002 anyone who really wanted to get married on their favourite golf course but was not religious had to try to persuade their minister.

"Now they can get a registrar to do it, as long as it's an approved place. Other than that the world's your oyster, which is why those kinds of civil ceremonies now account for a quarter of all marriages. I think the numbers will continue to rise slowly."

Civil marriages were first introduced by the Marriage Scotland Act 1939.

By 1946-1950, the first years covered by current records, just over 17% of weddings were civil marriages, while around 59% were Church of Scotland - by far the most popular religious choice of the time. More than half a century later the picture has changed dramatically.

Last year Church of Scotland services accounted for only 26% of all weddings, following a generally steady decline over the decades.

Of the civil services, humanism has seen particular rises recently with ceremonies conducted by the Humanist Society of Scotland up in 2007 for the third year running.

Juliet Wilson, Edinburgh-based Humanist Society of Scotland celebrant, said she thought couples chose their services because they wanted something more meaningful to them.

She said: "Our ceremonies are very personal. We encourage couples to express what marriage and commitment means to them so the ceremonies are very meaningful. You are not dictating to them the reasons why they are getting married.

"They are enjoyable too. A lot of couples have never been to a wedding service that was enjoyable before."

Marriage made on a rock-solid start
AS wedding service locations go, an extinct volcano in the centre of a city is pretty unusual.

But for Louisa Morrigan, 37, and Tom Hirons, 35, Arthur's Seat in Edinburgh was the perfect choice for tying the knot.

The main blessing was the good weather in June, as they became one of thousands of couples in Scotland to opt out of traditional religious marriage ceremonies.

Ms Morrigan, a Shiatsu practitioner, who lives with her writer husband in Edinburgh, said: "We wanted to get married somewhere that was special to us and to do things in a way that meant something to us. We wanted to design the ceremony ourselves and write our own vows. We definitely did not want it to be traditional and we did not want to get married in a registry office or a church.

"We have been to a few weddings in recent years and we felt that there was a lot of going along with it', and they weren't very powerful or moving.

"Everyone at our marriage ceremony experienced that and could go away feeling that they had been a part of it. We had everyone standing around us in a big circle, more as participants than spectators. I know people have been inspired by it."