Orchid Civil Ceremonies was founded by Ian Foster, a trained bereavement counsellor, who recognised the need for a wider choice of religious, non-religious, spiritual, alternative and civil funeral ceremonies.

Over a period of some years Ian has encountered many bereaved people who expressed their feelings of disappointment and sadness at being offered only two choices of funeral ceremony:

(A) A traditional religious funeral service conducted by a minister of religion; or

(B) A strictly non-religious funeral ceremony conducted by a Humanist (i.e. atheist) officiant.

There was no 'compromise solution' and no facilities existed for those families who, despite possibly having some underlying religious or spiritual beliefs, are not regular churchgoers and may have feelings of being dispirited and, or, disconnected from mainstream religious institutions and traditional religious ceremonies.