Humanism is a way of thinking that puts logical thinking and people — their worth, their ability to think, and their potential — at the very heart of how we understand the world and make decisions, instead of looking to gods or the supernatural for answers.

Humanism is about making the most of the one life we have, recognising every person deserves respect and equal treatment, trusting scientific evidence to understand the world around us, and advocating that goodness and ethics are fundamental human traits, not born of religious rules.

Whilst humanists don’t believe in religion, we respect an individual’s rights to their own beliefs.

Goodness me, that was a bit serious, wasn’t it! If you want it summing up in a sentence, it would be this:

To live as a humanist, don’t believe in a god or gods, and don’t behave like a complete and utter idiot* (*I frequently use swearwords there) to anyone or anything.

So there.

A humanist wedding ceremony is a non-religious wedding that focuses on the couple - their love story, the life they’ve lived and their shared values – rather than religious beliefs or traditions. It’s personal, meaningful and completely unique to the couple getting married.

Such a wedding doesn’t have to follow strict, worn-out tropes but is structured to how the couple want it to be – including celebrating culture, roots and heritage in a way that other ceremony types “don’t allow”. It’s an occasion where everyone feels completely welcome and inclusive, regardless of faith or beliefs.

A humanist wedding ceremony is unlike any other and is completely bespoke for the couple in question. It will reflect your values, your relationship and your story. There is no set script, so I start from scratch each time. The backbone of the ceremony is your love story and I work with you to tell it in exactly the way you want it to be told. It can be humorous, quiet, intense, emotional, or a combination of those and many other adjectives – it’s utterly up to you. It’s my job to get that story out of you and tell it in a way that makes you happy.

You get to decide on every aspect of your wedding. Unlike a church service, for example, where the couple spend almost the entire time facing away from their friends and family, with a humanist wedding the couple normally faces those attending, so they really get to feel the love in the room.

Religious weddings generally give you very limited choices when it comes to readings, music and especially your vows – with our ceremonies, you can write your own vows to make the whole occasion even more meaningful and beautiful. You can choose any music that you want, have any readings that you like from any source material (poems, song lyrics, your own words…), incorporate symbolic gestures (see elsewhere in FAQ) and involve as many of your friends and family as you want in the ceremony. The sky really is the limit. And as your celebrant, I will of course help you plan every step of the way.

The format and content of each wedding is unique, but here is a commonly-used structure to give you an idea to work with. The average ceremony lasts around 30-40 minutes and goes something like this:

• The Grand Entrance of the wedding party, to the music of your choice

• Introductory words from me about marriage, and what it means to you (the couple)

• A reading/poem, delivered by a friend or relative

• I read your love story to everyone there

• A symbolic gesture - for example a handfasting or a sand ceremony - with background music of your choice, if you wish

• The exchange of your personal vows

• The exchange of wedding rings

• The declaration of your marriage!

• A second reading/poem, delivered by a friend or relative

• The signing of the marriage certificate, with your choice of music playing

• Closing words from me

• The Grand Exit of the wedding party, where you walk back along the aisle as a newly married couple

• The Confetti Walkway

Absolutely not, no. We focus on the humans involved and their love story, rather than their beliefs. If you aren’t religious, though, you might want to look into what it takes to be a humanist – you might find out that you’ve been living as one all along without labelling it as ‘humanism’, which is exactly what happened to me! Apparently 1 in 5 people in the UK are non-religious and hold humanist beliefs, so around 20% of the population.

If you want 4 hymns, some religious texts and to break bread halfway through then no, unfortunately, you really should be looking at a religious ceremony. One of the fundamentals of a humanist wedding is that it is non-religious.

Having said that, a large function of any wedding is to bring friends and family together to celebrate with the couple, and it’s not uncommon for a couple to want to include some religious element or other because it’s deeply significant to them or their nearest and dearest. There’s normally a way to work these things out. Put simply – talk to me!

I’m absolutely all for them! By their very nature, humanist weddings frequently celebrate people from different backgrounds coming together, with two established families joining together as one. Symbolic gestures are a great way of celebrating these changes and shouting about them to your friends and family and to the world at large.

The most common symbolic gesture is one that’s a central feature of virtually every wedding, and that’s the exchange of rings to symbolise everlasting love and commitment. You don’t have to stop there, though - you can have a handfasting ceremony, for example, where ribbons or cords are laid gently round the couple’s hands (this is where the phrase “tying the knot” comes from). An increasingly popular one is where the couple create a memory box full of photos and letters and special mementos, to be sealed and then opened on a special date in the future, such as a momentous anniversary. This is a way of reflecting a couple’s promise to keep growing together and sharing precious memories.

Perhaps my favourite is the sand ceremony – where the couple carefully pour different coloured sands into a glass container which, as it fills up, represents their lives blending together, never to be separated. If the couple have children from previous relationships, involving them in this ceremony is a moving and inclusive way of making them a huge part of the creation of the new family.

There are lots of different types of symbolic gesture, so feel free to do a bit of research (or ask me!) to find those that appeal to you. You can even make up your own, if you like!

Funny you should ask that. Currently, humanist weddings are legal tender in Scotland, Northern Ireland, Jersey and Guernsey, but are not legal in England, Wales or the Isle of Man. At least, not yet.

In October 2025, and after many years of campaigning by Humanists UK amongst others, the Government finally publically committed to the legal recognition of humanist marriages in England and Wales. This will take a while to pass through parliament, but we can hand-on-heart confirm that it is definitely going to happen.

Until then, and assuming the couple want to be legally married, they still need to go to a registrar’s office and undertake a very simple, basic wedding ceremony – often called a “basic Registration of Marriage” or a “2+2 ceremony” - which is essentially to facilitate the signing of papers to make their union legal. This can be done either before or after the humanist wedding ceremony, which after all is the real celebration of the couple’s relationship and love for each other.

Good question! The choice is entirely yours, of course, and my honest advice would be to go with the person you feel most comfortable with and who will give you the service you want. It’s your day and your celebration, after all.

What I can tell you about humanist celebrants is that we undergo rigorous, in-person residential training before we are let loose as a licensed celebrant. We are all DBS-checked and insured. There’s a large network of humanist celebrants across the country which guarantees that your ceremony won’t be cancelled at the last minute if the celebrant falls ill – we’ve all had the same training and can confidently fill in for one another if required.

We are accredited annually by Humanists UK and part of that accreditation relies on us showing continuous personal development across the year, meaning we have to stay on top of our game and we have to prove as much to continue as an accredited humanist celebrant.

I’m not saying that an independent celebrant isn’t equally as solid and qualified, but it might be worth asking them…

Humanist ceremonies are inclusive of all backgrounds, identities and beliefs. They’re ideal for anyone wanting a wedding that’s deeply personal and also respectful of diverse values. All humanist wedding celebrants conduct same-sex weddings and vow renewal ceremonies.

Where do you want to get married? In your garden, at the local pub, in the centre circle of your favourite sports team? In a beautiful stately home, or by a pond in a field? On the beach in the Med, perhaps, or in a hot air balloon? Or maybe halfway up a cliff (for the record, I have an all-consuming fear of heights so you’ll need another celebrant if you’re planning anything over 2’ off the ground!)? I could, but won’t, go on, as I’m sure you get the picture.

The answer, really, is “absolutely anywhere you like” – as long as you have the landowner’s permission, if relevant.

By contrast, civil ceremonies and registrar events have to take place at venues licensed to hold weddings. One of the plus sides of humanist weddings not yet having legal status in parts of the UK is that venue licensing doesn’t apply, so for the moment you can let your imagination go wild in that regard.

My fee for weddings and vow renewals booked in 2026 is £875. A £250 deposit is to be paid after our initial Zoom chat/meeting in order to secure my services. The balance of £625 is due 1 week before the wedding itself.

If there are any out-of-the-ordinary expenses for your particular wedding – examples include foreign travel, overnight stays, specific items of clothing or decoration etc – you can either provide them for me or I can make the purchase and charge it back to you at cost price. Up to you!

If you have a burning question and I haven’t covered it here, please feel free to contact me. You can also find lots of useful information on the Humanists UK website.