7:00am Monday 22nd January 2007
By Lucy Clapham
HIGH Wycombe is becoming a hot spot for gay weddings, figures have revealed.
About 19,000 same sex couples took part in civil partnerships last year in the UK and this number is expected to rise dramatically in 2007.
The county has also been singled out as an ideal place for weddings by a gay website.
Figures have shown that compared to nearby towns in Hertfordshire, Wycombe had the highest number of gay weddings in 2006.
The town's register office on Easton Street was the setting for 256 weddings, 35 of which were civil partnerships making up 13.6 per cent of last year's ceremonies.
St Albans meanwhile had the highest number of services with 420, but only 11 per cent were civil partnerships.
And industry leaders have predicted a rapid rise in numbers as gay weddings are a money spinner with business predicted to generate around £380 million.
A report by the Office of National Statistics shows that gay couples splurge £20,000 on average for their civil ceremony compared to £19,500 for the average wedding.
Jenny Barnes, of Make our Day wedding services, based in Cock Lane, High Wycombe said: "It is not true of all same sex couples, but they do tend to have more to spend.
"They usually have double the income because there are no kids, which means they want something pretty snazzy when they do get married.
"It is very exciting as a planner because we are just at the start of it all and there is no tradition to follow so you can create whatever you like."
Bucks is also now listed on the Gay Friendly Wedding Venue website. It advertises the county as "a perfect location for your gay wedding", with the Chiltern Hills as a "wonderful countryside setting" for a civil partnership.
It lists eight venues in Bucks and also mentions that Four Weddings and a Funeral was shot in the Crown Hotel in Amersham, where Andie MacDowell and Hugh Grant had their first night of passion.
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