Roles for children at weddings

All children will feel honoured to be given a role at your wedding. It will make them feel extra important and allow them to feel a big part of the day. When choosing a role for a child, the main question will be which part will they play on your big day, and how young / old do they need to be. Here at Charles Class we offer the following ultimate guide to the many roles and ages of children at weddings to help with your planning.

Baby Flower Girls

A baby flower girl will be the youngest lady of the bridal party. Generally aged 0-2 years, their role is to simply look cute and adorable making your guests cooing with lots of oohs and arrs. Baby flower girls can be carried by your bridesmaid or if you wish to create maximum cuteness, they will look adorable in a dressed up cart. Have a browse of our baby flower girl dress collection for inspiration on style to make them picture perfect.

Flower Girls

A flower girls role in the bridal party is to look sweet whilst scattering petals along the bridal path or carrying a flower basket. Generally aged 3-8 years, flower girls proceed the bride and bridesmaids down the aisle, sometimes hand in hand with the page boy / ring bearer. Have a browse of our flower girl dress collection to see how you can bring sweet magic to the wedding day.

Page Boy / Ring Bearer

A Page Boy (paige boy) is seen to to be the little dapper in the groomsmen party and creates maximum cuteness alongside the flower girl. Traditionally, a Page Boy would carry the brides train down the aisle but in modern times, the Page Boy can carry the wedding bands on a cushion therefore having a joint role as a page boy / ring bearer. If you are not daring enough for him to carry the rings, he can simply walk down the aisle with a flower girl of a similar age. Generally aged anywhere from 3-8 years, a Page Boy is normally the bride or grooms child or of a close family relative. Have a browse of our Page Boy suit collection for our endless range of dashing Page Boy suits.

Junior Bridesmaid

A junior bridesmaid (junior-maid), generally aged 9-15 years, is too old to be a flower girl but still slightly too young to be a bridesmaid. Their role in the bridal party can vary but mainly they follow some of the adult bridesmaids duties given they are age-appropriate. Junior bridesmaids walk down the aisle right before the adult bridesmaids. If you choose to have the adult bridesmaids walk with the groomsmen, the junior bridesmaid can walk with the junior groomsmen / mini usher. Have a browse of our junior bridesmaid dress collection for age-appropriate styles to coordinate with the adult bridesmaids.

Junior Groomsman / Mini Usher

A junior groomsman / mini usher is a younger version of the adult groomsmen. Too old to be a page boy or ring bearer but still too young to be a full groomsman. His duties can include attending the rehearsal and having a choice of walking down the aisle with the junior bridesmaid or standing with the groomsmen at the front. Junior groomsmen can perform usher duties (mini-usher) by greeting wedding guests with the order of service and helping to seat them on the bride or grooms side. Generally aged between 9-15 years, a junior groomsman / mini usher will be made to feel just as important as the adult groomsmen. Have a browse of our boys suits collection for inspiration on creating a mini version of the adult groomsmen.

Ceremony Reader

A wedding reader has a very important job during the ceremony, to read a special poem or passage or may choose their own reading that means something special to the bride and groom. A wedding reader should be very comfortable with public speaking and therefore it is important for them to attend the wedding rehearsal so they know the order of when they will be reading and can practise in advance. Generally an age-appropriate child / teen for a wedding reader can be anywhere from 9-15 years but can be slightly younger if they are confident.

Guest Book Attendants

A guest book attendant is to greet guests at the wedding reception and ask each person that enters to sign the guest book. Generally this will be a teenager / young adults role which may also involve accepting cards / gifts and offering assistance with the seating chart.

Candle Lighters

In some religious ceremonies, a 'candle lighter' will light the taper candles at the alter just before everyone is seated. The taper candles are used by the bride and groom to light the unity candle. Although traditionally the couple's mothers light taper candles, a pre-teen aged between 9 -12 can be chosen to be the candle lighter. A candle lighter should attend the wedding rehearsal so they can test the lighting of the candles.

Sign Bearers

Sign bearers (sign-holder, sign-carrier) are those cute adorable children who hold wooden signs with "Here comes the bride", "Daddy, here comes Mummy" or "Just wait until you see her". Sign bearers can be the first to walk down the aisle for that picture perfect moment or they can proceed just before the bride. Generally aged between 2-7, a sign bearer will be an immediate or close relative to the bride or groom. A sign bearer can also be as a joint role with the flower girl or page boy.

Mini Security

Mini security (also known as ring security / special agent) is the perfect role for cheeky boys who wear a fun 'security' badge / photo ID. Their role can be combined with the ring bearer to protect the rings on route but generally they will pretend to be the security for the day.