Lives Celebrated - Mansfield funeral and wedding celebrant Wayne Swiffin

05/02/2026

🌷 As Mother’s Day approaches, we know this can be a tender time for many families.

We will be holding our annual Mother’s Day service, offering space for reflection, remembrance and connection.

All families are warmly welcome to attend, whether you wish to remember a mother, grandmother, or a loved one who held a mothering role in your life.

This service will be led by Steven Blakeley from A Wass Funeral Directors Ltd 🌷

04/02/2026

Just back from a meeting hosted by A. W. Lymn The Family Funeral Service at their HQ in Nottingham for a meeting of the Nottingham Derby & District National Association of Funeral Directors.

I was representing the Notts celebrants who are members of the Association of Independent Celebrants.

Mind, I could have just stood and admired the Rolls-Royces there. Amazing vehicles.

04/02/2026

I doubt there are many people whose famiies have not been touched in some way by cancer.

I know mine has.

Pancreatic cancer killed my mum a few years ago now, and me dad has had, and has, more than his fair share of various bloody cancers.

So, today is World Cancer Day.

I am thinking of those who have been lost to cancer, those who are living with cancer, those who are caring for people with cancer, and those professionals and researchers who are working hard to find ways of beating cancers.

Maybe one day ...

03/02/2026

What a lovely place Breckland Crematorium in Scoulton, Norfolk is.

I was honoured to lead a service there yesterday for a family friend who really was a very special person.

Breckland is a new(ish) site, developed by the family behind Thornalley Funeral Services, based in King’s Lynn (but with premises in Dersingham and Swaffham).

A proud family business, Thornallys was founded in 1981, and has since built up quite an excellent reputation in Norfolk.

But Ray Thornally (now retired but also still with a hand in things) tells me that his family had always had a dream to build a crematorium.

So, when the opportunity arose to do so, they did. It opened on July 1, 2019 (my birthday as it happens).

(The crematorium is now run by Ray and Shirley’s daughter Rachel, and her husband Nathan).

Breckland is located in the countryside, not far from the villages of Hingham and Watton.

It’s a modern facility, and it’s obvious that things have been thought through.

There is a covered walkway as you exit the chapel and it leads to a flower court. This guides people away from the chapel, which may also then be being used for another service.

There is a waiting room, with a coffee machine (other hot beverages are also available apparently but I only drink coffee).

The vestry is a nice size. There is also a room for bearers to wait.

The chapel itself can host about 120 people, but there is ample standing room so that more people (around 80 or 90) can watch or listen to the service.

It’s a modern facility, with helpful staff, and provides an alternative to older crematoria elsewhere in and around Norfolk.

And as I say, it was an honour to be there yesterday to lead the service for our friend.

03/02/2026

I'm a funeral celebrant based in Mansfield (but will travel).

You can count on me to do my very best to help you say your farewells to loved ones lost.

And it is a role that I can honestly say I love doing.

I get to listen as people share stories.

I am let into a life for just a few hours.

And I get to lead funeral services, get to tell life stories, and help people to say their farewells as they honour a loved one.

In my book, there is no greater privilege.

If you think you may need my services, email me using wayne@livescelebrated.co.uk, or drop me a message on 07854 689914.

I care about putting together funeral services that are about the person who has died, but written for those left behind. Helping celebrate lives Hello. I am Wayne Swiffin and I am an independent funeral celebrant based in Mansfield, north Nottinghamshire. I create funeral services that are all abou...

30/01/2026

The Bereavement Cafe Mansfield takes place on Monday up at Mansfield Crematorium.

I won’t be there for this one, as my services are needed elsewhere, but if you’re thinking of attending again, or taking that first step, please do go along.

The people who attend, and the people who make it happen, are lovely folks.

29/01/2026

It sounds daft many ways, but when I see people to talk about a loved one who has passed away, I often ask what they will miss most about them.

And, invariably, the reply is: "Everything."

It's not just the big things that people will miss.

More often than not, it's the small things.

Like not needing to make two cups of coffee.

Like not having to ask what they want for a chippy tea.

Like not being able to call them for a quick chat after a busy day at work.

And, of course, how much quieter a house becomes.

Bereavement and grief have such an effect on those left behind; and so it's not for us to say how someone should be feeling.

And of course, funeral celebrants cannot bring a person back.

But if we can help, even if just a little bit, even if just for a short time, then we celebrants will have done our job.

28/01/2026

Meet Walter.

He’s a spider plant.

He comes from a long line of spider plants, and some of his clan can be found in the offices at Mansfield Crematorium (from whence he came).

I had to admit, houseplants don’t always do well in our care.

But, I’ll keep you posted on his demise. Sorry, his growth over the coming months.

He’s got fresh water, top-quality soil from the garden, and plenty of light.

And he sits in a lofty position along with little Freddie Mercury, little Brian May, and little Liam Gallagher. And also a missile-firing robot.

Right, anyway, coffee made, scrambled eggs had, and it’s to my desk for a morning of writing.

27/01/2026

Today is National Holocaust Memorial Day.

And so I share a photo I took when visiting Auschwitz a couple of years ago.

No words needed really, but the horrors that happened here not that long ago should never be forgotten.

24/01/2026

Come across this a few times just recently.

It should be about respect.

⚠️ POLITE NOTICE ⚠️

PLEASE RESPECT HEARSES

It has sadly come to my attention that across the country, many funeral services have seen an increase in people's impatience on the roads, with people often pushing them on, dangerous overtaking, and even pushing between the hearse and limousine carrying bereved family members.

Just yesterday I witnessed a dangerous overtake involving a car and hearse, which nearly resulted in a head on collision.

PLEASE BE PATIENT- we all know how fast life is going, but a few minutes to you is a lifetime moment for them. For a bereaved family, that small gesture of patience and respect will mean the world. 🤍

23/01/2026

Different people have different wishes for their funeral service.

A celebrant-led service is often more personalised - they’re more about the person who has passed away and for the people who have been left behind.

Some independent celebrants (like myself) are more than happy to incorporate prayers and hymns if that is what people want.

If you are thinking about your own funeral service or that of a loved one, drop me an email using wayne@livescelebrated.co.uk or call/message me using 07854 689914.

WS