Alison Redcastle

I have been conducting Humanist ceremonies since 2007, and in this time I have taken over 520 funerals and over 120 namings.

I feel that significant moments in our lives are worth celebrating. From the beginning to the end of someone’s life there are always things to celebrate. I can help you do this. I bring warmth and friendliness to enable us to create a fitting, non-religious, ceremony. I find the work very interesting and I get great pleasure from helping a family experience an appropriate ceremony that does justice to the occasion.

I have been a Humanist all my life. When I was a little girl my father read me Charles Kingsley’s “The Water Babies”. In that book I learnt about the good idea of “Do as you would be done by”. It made a lasting impression on me and I embraced it as my philosophy on life.

For all ceremonies I work closely with the family. Every ceremony I take is unique because it reflects the person it is about.

Afterwards, I give you a printed copy of the ceremony to keep so you will always have it as a reminder of the good celebration of a life at the funeral or memorial.

I live in St Albans and am happy to travel up to an hour’s drive from home to take a ceremony. This includes all of Hertfordshire, plus London north of the Thames, Harlow, Luton, Amersham and surrounding areas.

I am married and have a son from my first marriage and two stepdaughters and two stepgranddaughters. I have a good understanding of complicated families, which can be useful in my work!

I like to take not more than four or five ceremonies a month. This ensures that I can give each ceremony the time and attention it deserves.

Alison was warm, welcoming and inclusive.

Our family members have different religions (and none), so a Humanist ceremony seemed the most appropriate.

Everyone said how fantastic the ceremony was.