The term ‘existing celebrants’ refers to trainee celebrants who’ve taken one training course with us, and are adding to their portfolio of ceremony types. For existing celebrants, wedding and funeral training follows the same format: you attend stages 2 and 3, not stage 1. Naming training follows a different format: three days over two stages, with existing celebrants attending both stages 1 and 2 (we have an FAQ on this at the bottom of this page).
2026 course fees for existing celebrants
Funerals (residential)
Attend stage 2 and stage 3
Cost: £2,038
Weddings (residential)
Attend stage 2 and stage 3
Cost: £2,038
Namings (online for stage 1, residential for stage 2)
Attend stage 1 and stage 2
Cost: £1,307
Why do existing celebrants have to attend stage 1 of namings training?
The namings course doesn’t run to the same format as funerals and weddings. Since 2016 we’ve run it over three days, with each of those days concentrating solely on namings as a ceremony type, and we require existing celebrants to attend all three days. This developed out of a recognition that for some funeral celebrants (less so wedding celebrants) just two days of namings training wasn’t sufficient to equip them to offer parents and families the level of service we’d hope for. It was therefore decided that existing celebrants should attend the first day of training, to boost their understanding of this ceremony type. Stage 1 in namings is not the equivalent of a usual Stage 1, but is a namings-specific introductory day. To assist existing celebrants, we waive most of the stage 1 portion of the fee, so they effectively get a £100 discount overall.
How do I apply?
To find out more and to download an application form, please see our Become a Humanist Celebrant page. Upcoming training dates can be found here.