Wedding Planner

Weddings in the UK are big business – the industry itself is worth over £4billion annually, the average wedding costs over £20,000 and brides take approximately 250 hours to plan their dream day. However, a combination of the need to get the best for their money, the desire to put together a spectacular day and the ‘money rich, time poor’ society that we live in means that more and more couples are turning to wedding planners to help them put together their wedding for them.

The wedding planner can be involved at various levels in a wedding day – from planning and preparing every single aspect of the event to simply finding one supplier or being there on the day to manage everything. The most success wedding planners have a huge knowledge of weddings and trends but also of business management.

This course is designed for those wishing to pursue a career as a wedding planner or a wedding planner’s assistant, either on a sole trader basis or as part of a larger wedding planning organisation.

This is a 6 unit course which encompasses a variety of wedding planning subject areas. For example; the function of a wedding planner, wedding ceremony venue selection, preparation of overseas weddings, themed weddings, planning of goods and services and setting up a home based wedding planning business.

This course is written to give those interested in entering the wedding planning industry (or indeed those already in it) a full and detailed look at the numerous tasks and roles a wedding planner can be asked to perform whilst also learning how to start a wedding planning business.

The course is linked to the National Occupational Standards for Business Administration and Customer Service.

Students on this wedding planner course will receive a FREE download of Event Planner Pro software (R.R.P. £94.99). Event Planner Pro is professional event planner software designed for professional wedding planners to use to organise their business and their clients’ events. With this software, you can add all your prospects and clients. You can keep track of their invoices and expenses, define your own categories, and even organise your clients’ guest lists and seating plans.

Event Planner Pro is designed for any type of event, not only weddings. There is no limit to the number of client events you can create. And with fantastic, instant access to on-screen help, which can be accessed by clicking the ‘?’ at the top of every screen, you’ll find everything you need at your fingertips to plan multiple events.

This Event Planner Pro software features:

• Easy to use screens, including great online help
• Create unlimited prospects and clients
• A comprehensive suite of reports can be previewed, printed, or exported to PDF files to enable you to e-mail them
• Use the Supplier Directory to maintain a list of suppliers that each of your clients can use. These can easily be copied into your client databases
• Produce a profit and loss figure for one of your clients or your entire business at a click of a button
• Advertising campaigns can be easily monitored to see how cost effective they are
• All your information is stored on your computer and can be password protected for security
• The backup facility makes saving your data simple
• The software will run on Windows XP SP2, Vista and Windows 7.

For more information on the Event Planner Pro programme, click 'Learn More'.

Unit 1 - The Wedding Planner Role

By the end of this unit the learner will be able to:

• Describe the key personal skills required to operate as a wedding planner.
• Discuss the ways in which the wedding planner can build good relationships with clients.
• Describe the ways in which good communication can be carried out with clients.
• Explain the essential facets of customer service that a wedding planner should adhere to.

Unit 2 - Church Weddings, Civil Ceremonies and Civil Partnerships

By the end of this unit the learner will be able to:

• Describe the process for organising a church wedding.
• Explain the civil ceremony process.
• Describe the organisation required for co-ordinating a civil partnership ceremony.
• Explain the process for ascertaining which is the most appropriate type of wedding ceremony for clients.

Unit 3 - Preparing a Wedding Overseas

By the end of this unit the learner will be able to:

• Describe the elements required to plan an overseas wedding.
• Discuss the potential hazards involved in organising a wedding overseas.
• Identify and describe the different types of overseas wedding packages available.
• Discuss the various types of marriage laws that may be encountered when planning an overseas wedding.

Unit 4 - Preparing a Themed Wedding

By the end of this unit the learner will be able to:

• Explain the ways in which a wedding planner can work with clients to design the perfect wedding theme.
• Describe the process for identifying the most appropriate suppliers of goods and services.
• Describe the issues that may need to be taken into consideration when planning a themed wedding.
• Describe the different types of unusual wedding locations that may need to be sourced.

Unit 5 - Planning of Goods and Services Required

By the end of the unit the learner will be able to:

• Describe the various considerations required when purchasing wedding party outfits.
• Discuss the different types of flower arrangements that may be required for the various types of weddings that may need to be planned.
• Describe the different types of entertainment that a wedding planner may be required to source.
• Identify and describe the additional items that may be required to be planned for a wedding.

Unit 6 - Setting up a Home Based Wedding Planning Business

By the end of the unit the learner will be able to:

• Discuss the process for setting up a home based wedding planning business.
• Identify and describe the necessary financial documentation required for a small business.
• Describe the strategies that can be used to market a wedding planning business.
• Identify and describe the various pieces of legislation that a wedding planner may need to abide by.

This course is designed for those wishing to pursue a career as a wedding planner or a wedding planner's assistant, either on a sole trader basis or as part of a larger wedding planning organisation.

There is no experience or previous qualifications required for enrolment on this course. It is available to all students, of all academic backgrounds.