Are you a fairly new wedding planner and unsure whether you are eligible to apply for Associate Membership? Here at UKAWP HQ we get lots of phone calls and emails from planners with a variety of questions, so we thought we would try to answer the main ones here…..

‘I’ve trained with xx company, is this a course you accept?’

Aside from our own Business Practicalities and Step by Step courses we review those courses run by other providers regularly and accept applications from those who have completed a course with particular organisations. The list of courses we currently accept can be found under the heading ‘Associate Membership’ here.

‘I’ve been in the events industry for years: do I still have to do a course?’

We accept applications from planners who have been in a full time, 100% events or wedding planning position for a minimum of two years without the need for additional training. We do however need proof in the form of employer references.

That said, many who have been in events rather than weddings still choose to attend one of our weekend courses which are entirely wedding planning orientated.

‘I’ve trained with the UKAWP/ a UKAWP approved course, so what else do you need from me when I apply?’

We need to see a copy of your Public Liability Insurance document and your training certificate (if you trained elsewhere).

We also need you to fill in our simple, online Application Form. Simply click on the ‘Associate Membership’ link.

In addition we review your website (this can be a test site if you are hoping to launch as an Associate Member). We look particularly for the following:

• compliance with our Code of Business Practice
• overall quality in terms of spelling and grammar plus branding*
• a well constructed site with all the information required for your target audience

* If we feel unable to accept your business initially based on your branding we offer a branding discussion or in some cases Workshop

If you have other queries, or would simply like to talk about the possibility of applying and the benefits to you as a business, please don’t hesitate to contact Sandy on membership@ukawp.com or 01442 828061.

If your questions are more to do with setting up a business in your particular geographic area, you may also wish to contact your local Regional Ambassador. Email addresses and regions are listed below:

• London & SE          dominique@ukawp.com or andri@ukawp.com
• North                       andrea@ukawp.com
• Midlands                 val@ukawp.com
• South West             melanie@ukawp.com

We look forward to hearing from you.

Photo Credit: Lloyd Dobbie