In the last 15 years of English Wedding I’ve watched – happily – as celebrant-led weddings have grown in popularity. More and more couples choose independent and humanist celebrants over council registrars for their weddings every year. This shift in ceremony styles goes hand in hand with the rise in really personal and unique weddings, and I think it’s wonderful. If you’ve only just started planning your wedding, and you’re not sure which kind of celebrant to choose for your wedding, I’m here to explain the differences in really simple terms to help you decide.

As you read, I hope you’ll enjoy the stunning images from Ashleigh & Dean’s humanist wedding at Kent’s beautiful Wise Wedding venue, by the amazing Smiling Tiger Studios.

What is a humanist celebrant

• someone who belongs to Humanists UK and follows a humanist way of life
• who is trained, accredited and has insurance through Humanists UK
• humanists are often atheists, and perform non religious (but often spiritual) ceremonies

What is an independent celebrant

• a trained person who will create a joyful and personal ceremony for your wedding
• who can include your religions in your ceremony if you wish
• no religious or organisational affiliations are required
• can choose to belong to an association of independent celebrants

Things both humanist and independent celebrants can do, and registrars can’t

• create a joyful, highly personalised ceremony, unique to the two of you
• completely change the words, spending a lot of time with you both beforehand to ensure they’re perfect
• perform a ceremony anywhere – from your favourite beach to your front garden
• include your children, friends and family in the ceremony itself
• personalise your ceremony from head to toe

Things a wedding celebrant can’t do

• use the formal wording a registrar would
• make your wedding ‘official’ in England and Wales

Additional benefits of a humanist wedding celebrant

• In Scotland, Northern Ireland and the Channel Islands, humanist ceremonies are legally recognised. This means you won’t have to nip into a council building to ‘make it official’.

Extra benefits of independent wedding celebrants

• choice! There are hundreds of independent wedding celebrants all around the UK, so you can research and find someone who is perfect for you both
• independent celebrants can mix elements of different faiths into your wedding – from paganism to Catholic hymns or Hindu prayers: literally anything.

On a personal note, as editor of English Wedding for 15 years I have learned so much about modern weddings and seen the rise in celebrant-led weddings first hand. I’m an atheist but I respect couples’ choices where a church wedding is important because of their faith.

However, I will shout from the rooftops to advocate celebrant-led weddings. Did you know UK churches are legally prohibited from performing same-sex marriages under UK law? And that Hindu and Islamic marriage isn’t legally binding in the UK? Couples have to make it legal at a registry office.

… which brings me back to registrars and the government approved wordings for marriage ceremonies in the UK. While the registrars I’ve met have been lovely, and some personalisation of ceremony wordings is allowed, declaring your love to the government isn’t romantic. And while I totally see the pride and victory in civil ceremonies for LGBTQ+ couples, and the appeal of making it official after so many years of non-acceptance and persecution, nothing can hold a torch to the absolute liberty, love and joy of a celebrant wedding.

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