More than 6,500 same-sex couples have formed civil partnerships since the new legislation was introduced last year.

The London Borough of Westminster was the most popular authority with 238 ceremonies, followed by Brighton and Hove with 236. Kensington and Chelsea in third place with 194 ceremonies, the General Register Office said.

Same-sex couples have been able to form a civil partnership in England and Wales since 21 December last year.  Although not officially regarded as marriages, they grant rights in areas such as employment and pensions.

Out of the 6,516 couples who went through the ceremony in England and Wales, 4,311 were men and 2,205 were women.

The figures also show there was a rush of ceremonies in December with 1,901 partnerships formed, followed by 1,749 in January, 1,518 in February and 1,348 in March.

The Civil Partnership Act came into force on 20 December in Scotland, a day earlier than England and Wales, where nearly 350 couples tied the knot between December and March.