State-funded faith schools
Around a third of all state-funded schools in England and Wales are schools ‘with a religious character’ – the legal term for ‘faith schools’, as they are known in England and Wales, or denominational schools, as they are known in Scotland and Northern Ireland. This number has grown in recent years as successive governments have increased the influence of religious […]
Humanist Weddings on Horizon
Humanist weddings get green light in Guernsey Humanist marriages have gained legal recognition in Guernsey increasing pressure for the law to change in England. A humanist wedding is a non-religious ceremony conducted by a humanist celebrant who shares the beliefs and values of the couple. It differs from a civil wedding in that it is […]
The Flexibility of a Humanist Wedding
Weddings conducted by a humanist celebrant can be performed in any part of the UK or crown dependencies, but they don’t come with legal recognition in England, Wales, or the Isle of Man. This is discriminatory, because religious people have a choice between being married by a civil registrar or being married by a representative […]
Technology Saves Funerals
At the height of the Covid pandemic some crematoriums restricted funeral mourner numbers to just five or six. A heartbreaking time for all. Gradually numbers crept up to a maximum of 30 and as of later in May 2021 these numbers will increase depending on the size of the crematorium. Sadly this will mean larger […]
The last light
Humanist celebrants conducting funerals for those who have served in the armed forces are accustomed to a casket draped in a flag. Perhaps the sounding of the last post. Sadly as decades pass veterans of the second world war are becoming a smaller band of brothers. If an 18 year old joined the forces in […]
Assisted Dying
We have long supported attempts to legalise assisted dying and voluntary euthanasia in the UK and crown dependencies for those who have made a clear decision, free from coercion, to end their lives and who are physically unable to do so themselves. In many cases, the person in question will be terminally ill. However, we […]