More and more people wish to celebrate the important times in their life and ultimately their death in their own individual way. Our aim is to enable them to do this.
LifeRites is dedicated to serving the needs of those individuals who hold no formal religious beliefs and all who seek to affirm their life and death in a personal and individual manner by providing practical advice and guidance on Rites of Passage and Life Celebrations. We also serve the needs of those who ascribe to Nature based spiritualities
LifeRites provides pastoral care to the terminally ill and their families.
LifeRites holds four basic principles as fundamental to all aspects of our operation: Professionalism, Service, Respect and Responsibility. Our aim is to work with integrity and openness within these principles and we demand the highest standards of courtesy, regard and gentleness in all our work.
LifeRites provides courses for those wishing to become celebrants within the organisation or wishing to develop their skills to work on an independent basis.
The courses provide an increasingly in depth study of:
Those wishing to become a celebrant with LifeRites are expected to complete the Foundation certificate after which they will become an assistant celebrant and may then elect to continue on to the Diploma and gain registered status with the organisation
Interviewing, empathy and listening skills are vital, as are diplomacy and being able to cope with emotion. An ability to relate to assembled people and to speak with them is also vital. A background of work with clients or in the caring professions (whether in the public, private or voluntary sectors) would be a real advantage
The foundation course comprises of practical work at intervals over four weekends with subsequent written work. A mentor will be assigned to each trainee. Assessment will be by their recommendation in addition to practical and written work. By the end of this course students will know whether they wish to continue on to the diploma year and seek registration with LifeRites.
The Diploma Course comprises distance learning, attendance at professional development weekends, a long weekend of practical study, suitable self placement with an appropriate agency (e.g. hospice, hospital chaplaincy, registrar, funeral directors, crematorium, etc) and attachment to a registered Celebrant as mentor. Assessment will be by written components, practical assignments, viva and recommendation of the mentor. Once accepted there will be a period of probation where they will work with their mentor to refine their skills. The Diploma may be followed over one, two or three years.
The third year of the course comprises of individual specialist research by a practicing celebrant and a 10,000-15,000-word dissertation. Students arrange personal tutorial time through out the course with their individual mentor
LifeRites has an individual mentoring policy through out its courses where the student can gain clarification and discuss issues arising from the course content and written work