Humanist & Non-Religious Wedding Services
Welcome – and Congratulations!
I’m sure you have come to this page, excited and eager to build your wedding plans. You may have many questions and perhaps some concerns but that’s only natural, you want your wedding day to be positively memorable.
The purpose of this page is to explain a little about what a humanist wedding service entails and how I will guide you through this experience from the outset until the special day itself. (You may prefer to read more about me here.)
What’s Next?
Generally speaking a humanist wedding ceremony will follow a script and a plan that has been developed just for you – this means your service will be tailor made.
To begin with, you will probably be researching several humanist celebrants and making a shortlist from those. Next, you may want to contact one or two celebrants by email or phone to find out more about how we work. Each British Humanist Association celebrant has passed a rigorous training course and is expected to work to high standards.
Once you have chosen a celebrant, you will meet, this may be at your home, the home of the celebrant or perhaps somewhere in between. You will have some ideas for your ceremony and you will probably want to hear what ideas the celebrant has.
The celebrant will be eager to hear your ‘story so far’, how and where you met, with as much anecdotal detail as you are happy to give. You will be encouraged to suggest friends and relatives (with their permission of course) who might make a contribution during the ceremony.
Last summer, at one outdoor wedding, a friend of the bride played the flute; at another lake-side ceremony a friend played the keyboard; at one ceremony a cousin with a fine voice sang a haunting song and at most weddings there are ‘knowing’ speeches, from Best Man, Best Woman and good friends.
“Bob, Thank you very much for being a fantastic celebrant. We feel very lucky to have found you.”
-Emma & Jaime
My Approach
After that first meeting, different celebrants will proceed in different ways.
I prefer to write a first draft for the ceremony within a week of the meeting, whilst ideas are fresh in my mind. I then email that first draft to you.
Now the client couple read and reflect on the script; they correct mistakes and suggest amendments and fresh ideas. One I have these changes I write a 2nd draft and email that back. We proceed like this until we have a plan and a script with which you are happy. However, even when we have agreed a ‘final script’, circumstances may change, right up to the day itself, last minute tweaks might be necessary.
It is my job to happily walk alongside you throughout this pre-wedding period, acting as a calming influence and coping with everything and anything that ‘turns up’.
On the day itself, I will be early to arrive and careful to ensure that all is ready. At the start of the ceremony we will welcome guests and pick out significant people, from the oldest to the youngest, from friends to family; finding out who has travelled from where. The idea is to include all of the guests and make them feel important, appreciated and involved.
There will be lots of smiles and echoing laughter at times but there will be serious moments too, when we remember ‘absent friends’ and perhaps when we hear the vows and witness the exchange of rings. Fun and solemnity and lots of love.
After the ceremony, I will prepare a well-produced copy of your wedding script for you to have as a keepsake, helping you to remember a wonderful day.
If you would like to know more, I would love to hear from you, an email message or a telephone call (07763005654) can lead to a good chat and/or a meeting.
In the meanwhile – Happy Wedding Planning!
Bob Jelley
“Thank-you so much for last Saturday. We had such a lovely ceremony followed by a fantastic day/evening.A lot of people commented on how unique the day was and how meaningful the ceremony was. Thank-you for being part of our special day that will be remembered for a very long time.”
-Adele and Jordan
“Bob, it was such a pleasure for us to have you as our celebrant. We will never forget how calm reassuring and professional. you were when you swooped in at the 11th hour to put together our ceremony. and what a ceremony it was! By far it was the highlight of our day and exactly as we wanted it to be. The script was perfect – we loved the jokes and the Happy Birthday. It was all part of the relaxed fun and friend-focused ceremony we wanted. You were our star – Thank you so much.”
-B&L
What is a humanist wedding?
Get in touch
To find out more about Bob and how he could be a part of your special day, call him on his cell: 07763005654, at home: 02476453832 or send him an email: rmjelley@gmail.com