A Church in Hampstead is set to become the first in London to be licensed to perform civil partnership ceremonies for gay couples.
Members of the congregation at Rosslyn Hill Unitarian Chapel voted in favour of the move and the church has now applied to Camden council for a licence to hold the ceremonies in its 19th-century Gothic-style building.
Minister the Rev Dr Patrick O’Neill said: “We are always pressing for greater equality for all people, which is very much consistent with our basic values as a church.
“The issue for us now is setting an example for the wider community.”
Religious buildings have been allowed to apply for civil partnership ceremony licences since December but only a handful, mainly Unitarian churches and none in London, have taken up the option.
The Unitarian Church, which is more liberal than its Church of England and Catholic counterparts, has lobbied for homosexuals to have full marriage rights.
In contrast the Church of England has imposed a ban on ministers conducting civil partnership services. Dr O’Neill, who moved from New York to become minister at the Hampstead church last year, said that he would be happy to conduct the services himself.
He said: “There could be a flood of applications from couples and nothing would make me happier. I truly don’t think we would be rushed off our feet. But, if we were, there are many Unitarian ministers we could call on to come and help by officiating at our chapel.
“I expect that, once we have a licence, other churches will quickly follow and apply for their own licences anyway.”
He added: “We need to raise cultural awareness and recognise that 10 to 15 per cent of people are gay, lesbian or bisexual. It affects many families, whether they recognise it or not.”
In June, 120 clergy wrote a letter to the Church of England asking it to reconsider its position but any decision is unlikely to be taken before a new Archbishop of Canterbury is appointed.
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A Camden council spokesman said: “We are aware of a request from the church in Rosslyn Hill for a licence to hold civil partnership ceremonies.
“They have asked for an application form, which we have sent them. Once they have sent it back we will process it in the usual way but there does not seem to be any reason why a licence could not be issued.”
