Question 1

Are you a Humanist?

Accepted Answer

I'm an Independent Celebrant, not a Humanist. Humanists conduct strictly non-religious ceremonies and are members of Humanists UK. Independent Celebrants are often willing to include some religious elements. I chose this route because even though I am not religious myself, I understand that people's beliefs are complex and someone way not go to church or temple, but may want some religious elements for many different reasons. Your ceremony is about you and your beliefs, not me and mine.

Question 2

How do Celebrants differ from Registrars?

Accepted Answer

Registrars and Celebrants offer a completely different service. Registrars ensure that all the legalities are covered, and the paperwork is signed, but there is often little personalisation involved. It's likely that you will only meet your Registrar on the day, so they won't know you. They also usually have several ceremonies on their books for the day.  A Celebrant leaves the legal stuff to the Registrar, and focuses on getting to know you, often in person, writing and performing something truly personal to you. There are no legal boxes that need to be ticked in a Celebrant ceremony, so you are free to make things as unconventional as you want. Also, Celebrants tend to reserve your wedding date for just your ceremony. I will only ever have one ceremony on a given day, so you have my full focus on your big day!

Question 3

Will the Ceremony be legal?

Accepted Answer

Celebrant-led ceremonies aren't currently legal, although there are law reforms in discussion in Government at the moment which may change that. You will need to have a simple legal ceremony with a Registrar to get the legals sorted either before or after your wedding day.

Question 4

How personalised can the ceremony be?

Accepted Answer

The sky is the limit honestly. As long as we're not breaking any laws then we can have a discussion about what you're thinking.

Question 5

I'm getting married abroad, can you still be my Celebrant?

Accepted Answer

Absolutely, I would love that! The fees on my website will still stand, but any travel and accommodation will need to be covered. Let's chat!

Question 6

Are there any couples or families you won't work with?

Accepted Answer

I love people and I get along with all different types of people. However, there might be some cases where the vibe isn't right between us or our values don't align. We are going to be working together to make your ceremony absolutely amazing, so I need to feel comfortable as much as you do. There are certain things I won't stand for, and if I get a whiff of racism, misogyny, homophobia or transphobia then I will know we are not a match.