Unwedding

From an item by Phil Reeves in the Independent.

A ceremony called 'The Ending of Marriage' is being pioneered by Sheila Davis, a senior divorce courts welfare officer in Birmingham. She asks couples to stand in her office while she takes them by the hands, and tells them to bid farewell along the following lines:

'Goodbye. Thank you for the good times in our marriage. I wish you luck in your new life. Our relationship will continue as mother and father of our children, but not as husband and wife.'

'Goodbye. Thank you for the good times in our marriage. I wish you luck in your new life. Our relationship will continue as mother and father of our children, but not as husband and wife.'

Mrs Davis, herself divorced and remarried, believes that the ceremony helps reduce the tears and acrimony of separation and divorce. 'The idea is to help people to become unstuck emotionally. It enables them to say goodbye to each other as man and wife, and hello as mum and dad of their own children.'

About 50 couples have been 'unmarried' in Birmingham, and the idea appears to be catching on elsewhere. Mrs Davis has received enquiries from other welfare officers after including the ceremony in probation service courses she gives.

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