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Too few people in the UK are aware that they can celebrate significant occasions in their life - and death - in a non-religious way. Through its network of trained and accredited humanist celebrants, the British Humanist Association (BHA) already provides humanist funerals, weddings, baby namings and other ceremonies in most parts of England and Wales. We seek to raise awareness that Humanist Ceremonies are available for everyone.
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The British Humanist Association is probably best known for its Humanist Ceremonies. We train and accredit celebrants to deliver humanist funerals, weddings, civil partnership celebrations, baby namings and other ceremonies, and currently have a network of over 240 self-employed trained and accredited celebrants. Following extensive consultation with the celebrants, the BHA has committed itself to developing and further professionalising the network with a view to ensuring, in the longer term, that everyone who would like a high quality non-religious ceremony will be able to have one, we have a detailed business plan to achieve this. The business plan involves a substantial investment in the network over the next 3 years, before the expanded network becomes financially self-sufficient. Key features of the business plan include the appointment of part-time regional development and support workers; developing the training programme for celebrants; improved support for celebrants; improved competency-based quality assurance standards and procedures which also inform the initial training programme; training for assessors; training for mentors; pastoral support, especially for celebrants who conduct funerals; targeted recruitment of new trainees; rebranding the service and marketing BHA humanist ceremonies both nationally and locally. Total cost over 2008-2010: £400,000 With the BHA having already committed to investing in the network, the funding sought is £200,000, with matched funding from the BHA.