Questions to Ask Your Wedding Celebrant

Firstly, if you’re getting married in the UK, it is only legally binding if it’s conducted by a licensed member of the Church or someone registered by the local authority, regardless of whether you’re having a civil or religious ceremony. So, what is a celebrant?

A celebrant is an independent professional who is not restricted by religion or legal obligation and can, therefore, provide you with a custom-made ceremony which is personal to you. In order to make your marriage legally binding you would need to give notice at your local register office and arrange to have a ‘Statutory Ceremony’, this part does not need to be treated as a formal ceremony.

You can find out more about the types of wedding you can have in the UK on a recent blog post I wrote, available here.

Some of the places you can find your perfect celebrant are:

Humanist Ceremonies™

The Celebrant Directory

UK Celebrants

When meeting your potential celebrant for the first time, what kind of impression do they give you and is this someone you want to play a major role in your wedding? Consider their personality, appearance and speaking style.

Experience

• How long have you been a celebrant?

• What training have you undertaken as a celebrant?

• Have you worked at our venue before?

The Process

• What is the ceremony writing process?

• Can we write our own vows?

• Do you have sample ceremony readings/vows that we can choose from?

• What other options are available for the ceremony? Such as unity candles, sand ceremony, handfasting, wine ceremony, mother’s rose presentation etc.

On The Day

• How many weddings do you officiate in one day?

• Do you have a backup officiant available if you are unable to attend at the last minute?

Pricing and Confirmation

• What are your wedding packages and fees?

• What type of deposit is required and what is the schedule of payments?

• Will you reserve my wedding date until we finish interviewing celebrants?

As part of my full and partial planning packages, I will liaise with all your suppliers, including celebrants. You can find out more about my services here. To discuss further and find out how I can help you, visit leaholiviaweddings.com or contact me at leah@leaholiviaweddings.com.