Most Humanist funerals are cremations at a local crematorium but burials are still sometimes preferred. The choice is entirely for whoever has responsibility for making the necessary arrangements. A variation on traditional burial in a public cemetery is burial at a woodland site where such exists within a reasonable distance. Humanist Celebrants will generally conduct a Humanist Ceremony wherever it is arranged within their area, subject of course to normal considerations of access and safety for all participants.

Crematoria and public cemeteries may be owned and operated either by the Local Authority or commercially. In either case, they are open for use by anybody and everybody. The use of churchyard or other religious burial sites may be restricted to members of the particular religious organization, although some will have made arrangements with the Local Authority to reserve space available to all.

Unfortunately, crematorium chapels are still often adorned with symbols of the Christian religion, particularly in older and long-established crematoria. Some Humanist families find this objectionable. However, most crematoria will now have the cross or other symbol temporarily removed or covered up when requested in good time before the ceremony begins and before the mourners enter the chapel. When discussing the arrangements for a ceremony with the family, Humanist Celebrants will ask if they have any preference to remove the cross or not.

Funerals are normaly arranged by Funeral Directors who may be individual local businesses or part of one of several national chains. As part of their ‘undertaking’ duties on behalf of their clients, they will secure the services of a suitable celebrant if one has not previously been contacted. They are now used to meeting the wishes of families who want a Humanist or non-religious funeral and will know who can be called upon to conduct such a ceremony in their area. Humanist Celebrants are therefore usually engaged by the Funeral Directors who need to be confident that the chosen celebrant can be relied upon. This confidence has to be built up between the celebrants and the Funeral Directors.

Celebrants, whether Humanist or not, charge a standard fee for their services, unless they choose to waive this in some special cases and has traditionally been handled by the Funeral Directors, appearing in the bill to the client under disbursements.

An excellent ‘Practical Guide to Non-Religious Funeral Ceremonies’ is published by the British Humanist Association and there are other useful collections of suitable reading material. These publications are useful both to Humanist Celebrants and those they are helping, by suggesting from experience what could be included in a ceremony. Beyond that, the essence of a Humanist Funeral Ceremony is that it is personal and particular to the person whose life is being celebrated and the wishes of the family and friends organizing the tribute.

Some useful publications are: A Practical Guide to Non-Religious Funeral Ceremonies, by Jane Wynne Willson
Seasons of Life, compiled by Nigel Collins
Coping with Death, by Leslie Scrase (Second Edition)