04/02/2026
A great deal of time goes into preparing each wedding, so don’t be fooled — while many of us may make it look easy, it’s anything but!
DID YOU KNOW??
To maintain our registration as Civil Celebrants, we’re required to complete OPD (ongoing professional development) and hold appropriate insurance for your day.
Here’s a list of just some of what we do…
- Introductory chats with couples
- Bookkeeping and invoicing for new couples, including deposits and final balances before the wedding day
- Providing ceremony guidance, tips on vow writing, and suggestions for traditions, rituals, and readings.
- We also have an obligation to provide the Happily Before and After Brochure (HEBA), as well as information on pre-marital counselling services
- Responding to dozens of emails from existing couples with upcoming weddings, funerals, or events
- Planning and scheduling social media and marketing (often the first thing to slip when I’m busy!)
- Working with couples to ensure their Notice of Intended Marriage (NOIM) is completed, signed, and submitted no later than one month before the wedding
- Preparing a draft ceremony script and writing the couple’s story to share on the day
- If we’re also MCing, helping plan and prepare a runsheet so the event runs smoothly
- Booking a final meeting a month or so out to answer last questions and talk everything through
- Travel and performance on the day
- Registration of the marriage
And SO much more!
The next time you see a Celebrant doing their thing, remember it’s not just the 30 - 45 minutes you see. There’s so much more happening behind the scenes to get us there!
