Covid Safety at Weddings

Written by - Lillian Lyon

So here I was believing that celebrants marry people.
I mean, isn’t that our gig?
Our jobs are about soaking up all that delicious love, then floating home on a cloud of emotional happiness.

Never did I think part of that ethereal imagery would involve collecting phone numbers, emails, scanning QR codes and squirting alcohol gel out of bottles covered in primary coloured labels.

Not very weddingy.

Welcome to the new world of Love during Covid-19.

From state to state, celebrants have different obligations to keep our communities safe from that spiky culprit starting with a C.

Here’s what we’ve been doing in NSW, and with restrictions easing/tightening celebrants have to keep up with fluctuating rules.

Celebrants in NSW must comply with The Public Health (COVID-19 Restrictions on Gathering and Movement.) Brad and his team have actually done a good job keeping business open and tracing outbreaks.

Wedding services including celebrants must develop and comply with a Covid-19 Safety Plan (CSP) which addresses a specific checklist. The CSP must be approved by NSW Health, and a copy to be made available for inspection by an authorised officer or police officer as requested. Heavy stuff eh?

So what on earth is in the CSP?

The safety requirements are individually stated on the CSP with a box underneath for the celebrant to write what they’ll do to adhere to those requirements.

For example, where it states to keep a digitised record of all attendees at the ceremony, I’ve responded in my Covid 19 safety plan that I set up a QR code in a contact application (I use guest track) and the guests/attendees simply scan from their phones and enter their information.
Too easy.
I like to print the QR code onto an A4 sheet which I put in a frame and sit on the signing table and also make announcements over my PA to remind guests to scan. If there’s not much action, I take the code around to everyone which gives me a great opportunity to chat.
At one wedding, another couple who were attending as guests, booked me for their wedding as they scanned the QR code I was holding.
Who’d have thunk this action could be a public relations exercise?

Another safety requirement is to consider alternatives to shared items, so I stated in my CSP that I have hand sanitiser on hand for signing the certificates and everyone uses separate pens.

There are other safety requirements and the whole thing has had NSW celebrants in a whirl.

They are either totally confused, overwhelmed, in denial, or nailing it.

I’d like to think I’ve got this by the bouncing balls.