Services
Naming Ceremonies
Welcome your new arrival with family, friends and heartfelt promises.
What is a Naming or Welcome Ceremony?
A naming or welcome ceremony is the perfect way of gathering family and friends together to celebrate and welcome your new baby into your family and announce your baby's name. Although often held for new babies, naming ceremonies can be for children of any age.
A naming ceremony is a non-religious based ceremony although you may choose to include readings, poems or music with a religious connection.
A naming ceremony has no legal standing so you can choose where it will take place, perhaps at home, in the garden or a variety of other locations either inside or out, subject to appropriate permissions.
A naming or welcome ceremony is a lovely way to celebrate and welcome adopted children or uniting children into a newly blended family.
Creating the Naming Ceremony
In order to create your naming ceremony, I will meet with you either in your home or an alternative location, at a time that is best for you.
You can include any personal touches you choose, such as lighting candles or sand pouring therefore creating a bespoke and unique ceremony. We will discuss all elements so you can decide what to include and how long the ceremony should be.
I can help you select music, poems and readings to further personalise your ceremony. The basis of the ceremony is secular and suits families who choose not to follow a particular faith although you are free to include religious readings, poems or music if you wish.
It provides an opportunity for you as parents to make promises to your child, along with siblings and grandparents.
You can choose any number of Guide Parents or Mentors who can make their promises too.
What happens during the Ceremony?
I will help you to design your naming ceremony in any way you wish and depending on your choices, the ceremony can last from 20 to 40 minutes.
The following is a guide to the different elements you can include and how a naming ceremony takes shape:
- ·Welcome and Introduction
- ·Reading or poem
- ·Family Story: becoming a parent, child's arrival, their personality
- ·How and why their name was chosen
- ·Formal Naming part of ceremony
- ·Parents Promises
- ·Guide Parents Promises
- ·Grandparents / Siblings Promises
- ·Music, reading or poem
- ·Blessing
- ·Presentation of a commemorative certificate and / or gift
How To Book Your Naming Ceremony
Call Me To Discuss
See my contact page or home page for ways to reach me. Feel free to email, call or text for further information, to discuss your thoughts and wishes and to book a date for your naming ceremony.
Booking The Date
If you would like to go ahead, I will book the date and send you my terms, conditions and our contract for the ceremony.
My fee for a naming ceremony is from £325, depending on location, which I charge in two equal instalments.
The first instalment is charged upon booking to secure the date and time.
The final instalment is charged 4 weeks before the date of the ceremony.
Planning The Ceremony
I will arrange to meet you at a convenient time and location so we can discuss everything you would like to include in your naming ceremony.
I will give you ideas for poems, readings and music if you need any pointers and also a selection of parent, grandparent, sibling and Guide Parent promises if you do not wish to write your own.
Together we can create the perfect naming ceremony.
Writing The Ceremony
After we meet, I will write your naming ceremony and you will have the opportunity to make any changes to ensure it is perfect before the big day.
On The Day
I will be there nice and early so we can have a chat first and make sure everything is in place ready for your naming ceremony celebration!!