Bringing us together for community, connection & collaboration
Our annual celebrant meet-up is BACK! After our previous meet ups in West Sussex and Oxford, we’re moving down the country and have found a new venue and location for our third gathering in Bristol.
Our previous meet-ups, for many of us, were the medicine we didn't know we needed! It gave us a good dose of time to be in the presence of other celebrants from all over the UK, and Ireland and to really feel the benefits of community, collaboration and camaraderie. There were smiles and belly laughs, tears and deep emotions! We had it all! Lovely food and fabulous company. When we spend so much time working by ourselves, it's so important to come together with others! FACT!
And just to be clear, this meet-up is for ALL celebrants. Whatever level of experience you have, whatever organisation you trained with or belong to. Everyone is welcome.
WHEN: Tuesday 3rd November, 2026, 10-5/5.30pm approx
WHERE: The Anglican Chapel, Arnos Vale Cemetery, Bath Road, Bristol, BS4 3EW
The stunning Anglican Chapel was designed in 1839, boasting original Victorian features alongside modern additions the perfect space for our meet up this year.
On the day
Arrival
Arrive at Arnos Vale at 0930 tbc. Meet your cellie buddies who you'll be spending the day with, enjoy the teas, coffees and refreshments being served. There is free onsite parking for those who'll be driving.
A warm welcome
We’re really so touched that celebrants are coming from all over to spend the day with us and their celebrant colleagues. So we'd like to start the day showing our gratitude and making everyone feel right at home.
Your year in review
We’ll break everyone down into smaller groups to give you the opportunity to chat with your cellie friends and talk about your year, using our fun ranking system of awful, average, and awesome! It’s a great opportunity to reflect and share how your year has been, the highs and lows, with people who get it!
Round table discussions
With a quick mix up of the groups, we’ll continue with a relaxed round table session. We will give you a random selection of questions and topics to discuss, which will get you pondering all aspects of celebrant life and work! From the political, the controversial, the bonkers to the everyday celebrant stuff, we'll cover a lot of ground.
Lovely Lunch
We’ll break for a hearty vegan/vegetarian lunch of sharing and grazing platters, and re-energize ourselves ready for the second half of the day.
Ceremony Stuff
A chance to be inspired by each other's ceremonies and to learn from our victories and mistakes. Just what you need, right after lunch!
Q&A session
A great time of the day for your questions to be answered by an amazing hive mind of celebrants. Ask anything you want, we’re all ears!
Debrief, coffees and chatter
We’ll wrap up the day and bring the session to an end (sniff, sniff). Leaving you to enjoy some refreshments in the company of your cellie buddies.
*Optional evening gathering
For anyone staying over for the evening, or who wants to stay a bit later, we’ll be at the Arnos Manor Hotel to continue the conversations and grab a bite to eat. Venue tbc.
Accommodation
For people looking to stay over either the night before or the night of The Arnos Manor Hotel is 500 metres away and walking distance from our venue. Using this code AVALE on booking will give you 15% off of the room price.
As an easily accessible location there are plenty other hotels and accommodation in the area including:
The Linfield Guest House (500 metres away)
Ibis Bristol Temple Meads (1.5km)
Facebook group
Once you're booked in you'll be able to access our temporary Facebook group, a space to chat to other celebrants, make plans, and ask questions etc. Often people organise lift shares or travel buddies via the group too.
Ready to book your spot?
The cost of this whole day event and lunch and snacks throughout the day is £80 for current Celebrants Collective members (paid members, trainees and graduates included) and £95 for non members. Please note that you will need to have booked your spot by October 20th so that we can ensure the best organisation of the event.
Hope to see you there!
Questions? Email us here and we'll get straight back to you.