Limit on funeral mourners to be lifted

We are delighted to hear that more than 30 people will be able to mourn their loved ones at funerals in England from 17 May, under plans announced by the government.

As part of the next step of easing lockdown restrictions, ministers are set to remove the 30-person legal limit a month earlier than planned.

This means any number of mourners will be able to gather as long as the venue can comply with social distancing.

England's next lockdown easing, stage three, is due no earlier than 17 May.

During the pandemic, many have been forced to watch funerals from home over live-streams, making grieving harder. And those able to attend have had to do without handshakes and hugs.

We at Wells Funeral Services welcome this news.

Restrictions on Funerals but not Snooker?!

We have to ask why a snooker tournament is being played in front of fans when we are told restrictions on funerals will remain in place until at least June.

The World Championships have started in Sheffield at the Crucible Theatre at 33% capacity but the final in May is set to be played in front of a capacity crowd. 

For funerals, a maximum of 30 people are allowed to attend in Englandand the government's plan to further ease restrictions said the limit will be in place until at least 21 June. 

One funeral director has said, "If you can go to the Crucible and have people indoors, then funerals, to me, to families, are far more important and I do not really understand why the restriction is going to be in place until June.”

We couldn’t agree more.

Biker's Funeral

It was an honour to arrange this funeral recently for a former keen motorcyclist. The family had requested a video be made of the funeral cortege, which can be seen below.

Whoops! That's a Grave Mistake!

Trainee gravediggers have horrified conservationists by digging a practice grave in parkland after mistaking it for a cemetery.

Three trainee contractors were asked to dig a mock grave in a cemetery as part of their training.

But instead of choosing a spot in Easthill Cemetery, they used their mechanical digger to excavate a huge pit in an adjacent field of ‘irreplaceable ecological value’.

Campaigners who are fighting to protect the field from a large housing development were ‘intensely upset’ by the mix-up.

Mark Player, of the Friends of Easthill Field, confronted the group, and was told they were following orders as part of their ‘grave-digging education’.

Mendip District Council said the trainees were sent to Easthill to avoid disrupting burials at their usual training sites across the district.

A spokesman said the contractor was instructed to conduct the training session on land within the boundaries of the cemetery. But the message was ‘misunderstood’.

The spokesman added: ‘I am satisfied this was simply a communication error.’

Here at Wells Funeral Services, we’re aware of how important good communication with our clients is, particularly at such a difficult time. Contact Us to find out more about our high standards of service.

Should we be allowed to form 'Bereavement Bubbles'?

A charity has suggested that grieving households should be allowed to form "bereavement bubbles" with others who have lost loved ones during any future coronavirus lockdowns. The Sue Ryder bereavement charity said this would help families feel less isolated and alone as they go through the grieving process during the coronavirus pandemic.

Its research found 62% of people who have lost a loved one since the end of March felt bereavement bubbles would be a good idea. The charity found 59% felt as though their grief had been forgotten. Two-thirds of the 503 adults surveyed said forming a support bubble would be a "vital source of support". The research also found that 62% feel the nation has become "desensitised to death", while 55% feel their loved ones' death is "just a statistic".

Single-adult households can currently form a support bubble with another household without needing to adhere to social distancing

The government is being urged to extend this to bereaved households containing more than one adult, such as housemates or older children, during any local or national lockdown.

The Sue Ryder charity has seen a spike in demand for its bereavement support services, including online video counselling and an online community forum.

Chief executive Heidi Travis said: "Integral and deeply personal elements of the bereavement journey have been disrupted for so many over the last few months due to social distancing measures.

"So many people have been unable to say goodbye to those who have died, they have then had to grieve in isolation, without the physical presence or touch of those close to them."

Matt Williams, head of information and support at terminal illness charity Marie Curie, added: "People accessing our bereavement support service are telling us that the absence of normal support networks such as friends and family is proving incredibly tough.

"Many people have not been able to say proper goodbyes, attend funerals or hug friends and family. Bereavement bubbles could help alleviate this and the potential long-term effect complicated grief can cause."

A Department of Health and Social Care spokeswoman said: "We recognise how difficult it has been for people to be cut off from their friends and family, and that this has been a significant issue for those who live by themselves.

"Support bubbles were introduced to assist the loneliest and most isolated in society.

"Any changes to the guidance on social contact will be made in line with the latest available scientific evidence."

The Sue Ryder Bereavement Charity supports people through the most difficult times of their lives. Whether that’s a terminal illness, the loss of a loved one or a neurological condition – we’re there when it matters. Our doctors, nurses and carers give people the compassion and expert care they need to help them live the best life they possibly can. Click here to find out more.

Want your funeral paid for? Then fly Emirates!

Airlines are trying all sorts of things – from  leaving middle seats empty, to requiring everyone to wear masks, to health checks at terminals – in order to instill confidence in passengers who may be wary of air travel amid the global pandemic.

Emirates’ new insurance for travelers stipulates that if one of its passengers is diagnosed with COVID-19 during their journey, the Dubai-based airline will cover their medical expenses, up to €150,000 (about $176,000). It will pay €100 ($118) per day for quarantine costs – such as a hotel room – for up to two weeks. 

And if the worst happens, Emirates will offer €1,500 (about £1,300) for a passenger's funeral. The insurance is automatic with ticketing, effective immediately, and carries no fees for travellers! If you’re flying Emirates in the near future, then don’t forget our competitive funeral costs!

The Government admits it was wrong to ban families from funerals

Banning close relatives from funerals during lockdown was wrong, the Health Secretary Matt Hancock has admitted. He said, “Distancing guidance was really strongly interpreted. People didn’t go to bury their spouses of 50 years. We realised we made a mistake and we changed the guidance.”

Grieving relatives were left heartbroken at the height of the pandemic when they were banned from burying family members because of the need to maintain social distancing.  In a webchat discussion with members of the women’s club AllBright yesterday, Matt Hancock said the guidance was a mistake and regretted that it had been “really strongly interpreted”.  He said, “We put out social distancing guidance, which was really strongly interpreted, and it meant that in the peak of the pandemic, lots of people didn’t go to the funeral even of someone they’ve been married to for 50 years. And there was a little boy from south London who was buried without his parents there, and that really affected me. So we realised we’d made a mistake and we changed the guidance.”

Under the guidance, immediate family members were allowed to attend funerals so long as the services took place within strict social distancing guidelines and with a limit on numbers of people attending.  However, funeral directors have accused councils of misinterpreting lockdown rules by banning family members from crematoria and graveyards and going “way beyond” their legal powers.  Ministers then had to intervene by writing to councils to instruct them to work with faith groups and funeral directors to forge “safe, sensitive and innovative ways for funerals to take place”.

Restrictions have now been relaxed. Find out here how we at Wells Funeral Services can assist you in arranging a respectful but cost-effective funeral.

Source: The Daily Telegraph

Councils increase cremation costs despite the Covid crisis

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The costs of laying your loved ones to rest have shot up during the coronavirus pandemic - despite providers offering 'pauper's funerals' in lockdown.

Although a limited amount of family and friends are being allowed to the ceremonies, two thirds of councils have raised their prices by up to 16%. The rise of Covid-19 has meant smaller numbers of mourners can now attend funerals in order to maintain social distancing. Some councils have reacted by slashing costs, while a quarter of them have simply frozen their prices.

One widower told the BBC a lockdown service for his wife was like a 'pauper's funeral'. Neville Wilson said that only five mourners could attend his wife Doreen's send-off after she died of lung cancer in March. He said the funeral procession was a hearse only, without any floral tributes, with her family having to take their own cars to attend the ceremony.

Coventry City Council, who ran the service, cut it from 45 minutes to 15 minutes but still charged the same price. Machine engineer Mr Wilson, 66, said: 'It felt unbelievably bad. 'It felt like a pauper's funeral. It couldn't get any worse if we'd tried.

'I then started some investigation myself as to which councils were and which councils weren't freezing costs and I thought if some councils are doing it, why aren't Coventry council doing it?'

Local authorities have defended price rises, pointing out they were agreed before the pandemic, which has also made putting them on more expensive. Andrew Walster, from Coventry City Council, said service times had to be cut to introduce deep cleaning between service. He said: 'Unfortunately, that didn't reduce our costs of providing that service to the public, in fact it increased it, by providing those additional facilities for bereaved families,' he said. 'We haven't passed on those additional costs.'

Down to Earth, a project of the charity Quaker Social Action who support people struggling with funeral costs across the UK, slammed the price hikes. Acting manager Lindesay Mace said: 'What we're seeing here are increases in cremation fees in the last year of as much as six, seven and even 10% in some places. Those kind of price rises are clearly beyond the means of the average person, especially when you bear in mind that incomes haven't risen by nearly as much.'

Chief executive officer of the Institute of Cemetery and Crematorium Management, Julie Dunk, said councils had to invest in environmentally friendly equipment.

But widower Mr Wilson said prices were heaping more anguish onto struggling families. He added: 'My two sons are still extremely angry. And so are my wife's family. They're very upset that they couldn't attend. I really wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy,' he said. 'Horrendous is the word.'

Source: The Daily Mail

Skype Funerals & Rental Coffins

Laurie Graham’s wry but thoughtful observations of her husbands live-streamed funeral show that, despite the limits and hardships of a funeral under lockdown, not all comfort is lost.

This article originally appeared in The Spectator.

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When my husband died last month, I was as prepared as a person can be. Howard had been afflicted for many years by early-onset dementia and that, as we all know, is a one-way street. What I was totally unprepared for was the lockdown factor. Could we even have a funeral? Yes, we could, as long as we adhered to some rules. And would I like the ceremony live-streamed to those unable to attend? Well yes, I suppose I would.

The offer of live-streaming solved my biggest problem. Howard was an American who had lived for many years in Europe. He had family and friends who couldn’t possibly travel to be with us in person. But all they needed was a Skype account and they’d be able to witness and feel part of the whole 20-minute, socially distanced ceremony. Perfect.

In Ireland funerals are arranged swiftly. There had been a bit of a logjam during the pandemic, with a particular chapel reserved for virus-related deaths, but Howard’s was non-Covid so we were offered a slot for the third day after his death. There was much to decide in a short space of time, not least who to invite to the live-stream. I was advised by the crematorium staff that the platform had its limits: no more than 20 people logging on.

My list of invitees was soon whittled down to below 20 because of the number of people who didn’t have/didn’t want/couldn’t figure out Skype. I turned a deaf ear to those who acted helpless. Land sakes, if I can manage Skype, any idiot can.

The crematorium website carried detailed instructions. Perhaps too detailed. We tend to scan ahead or zone out when we’re reading from a screen.

I could see that my dear departed husband, ever a punctual man, was waiting in the back of the hearse.

People had to book a place on the stream and were asked to turn off their own camera and mic so that we, at the crematorium, would only know of their presence by their Skype avatar. That was it. Simple, right?

I’m embarrassed to say I arrived late. Dublin traffic. Lockdown? What lockdown? But they couldn’t start without me because I had the priest with me. As we barrelled through the gates of the crematorium, I could see that my dear departed husband, ever a punctual man, was waiting in the back of the hearse.

In the interests of avoiding unnecessary contact, the priest decided to put on his vestments in the car park. A gale was blowing and a surplice is a voluminous garment. For one horrible moment I feared he was going to take off, like a kind of clerical paraglider, and we’d have to call out the coastguard.

Our late arrival didn’t matter. The staff were having a few technical problems co-ordinating the Skype feed, the projection of a photo (sunset over Venice) on to a screen and cueing up Samuel Barber’s ‘Adagio for Strings’. Fair play. These aren’t the kind of skills you’d expect to need working in the funeral business.

This was the moment when I realised some of our guests had skipped reading the live-stream instructions. It was morning, Eastern Daylight Time. Howard’s bereft sister could be seen, sitting in Delaware, drinking her Java. His nephew, in his NYPD squad car, was on a cigarette break, as we could all see. Some people were identifiable only by the rim of an ear or the sidearm of their specs. A granddaughter was wearing cat ears, a sight that melted my heart as much as the fact that she was determined to be there.

One participant, visible only as a flat-top afro, has still to be identified. Whoever they were, they’d logged on as ‘guest’, so no clues there. I’ve watched the recording several times (yes, a recording, available for 30 days, bring your own Kleenex) and I’m still baffled. Perhaps it was some random person who just likes going to funerals. There are such people.

So, witnessed by this motley throng, the coffin was carried in. And here I must digress. Did you know you can rent a coffin? Neither did I. On the day after Howard’s death I picked out the absolute cheapest unadorned model. It was no reflection on what he meant to me. But to speak plainly, it was for incineration and I hate waste.

Then, because I’m also the kind of woman who has to try on a few more pairs of shoes even after I’ve found the ones I’m going to buy, I continued browsing. Which is when I spotted ‘rental casket for cremation’. Wait, what?

A rental is a regular mid-range coffin into which is inserted a cardboard container for the body, just for the duration of the service. Who knew?

Not all crematoria accept these double-shell coffins and funeral companies that offer them don’t exactly promote the option. You’d have to be a beady-eyed shopper like me to notice it. Did I go for it? You bet. It saved me £400, which I’d much rather spend on a party in memory of the dear man.

Live-streamed, Howard was dispatched according to the old rite in the Book of Common Prayer. Its language is beautiful and uncompromising and seemed fitting in a chapel where the pews had been removed and just ten chairs placed two metres apart. There were no hymns, no eulogy. Time enough for that when the plague has passed.

It lacked nothing in solemnity and I found the virtual presence of friends and family, coffee mugs, cigarettes, cat ears and all, very comforting. In the midst of life (and live-streaming) we are truly in death.

(C) Copyright 2020 The Spectator

Cardboard Coffins and Drive-thru Funerals

While the numbers of coronavirus deaths has begun to slow, funeral homes and crematoriums are struggling to work through the enormous backlog of New York’s 16,000 dead.

The city has seen more than 16,400 deaths in two months, tolls not recorded since the last deadly ‘flu pandemic of 1918. Meanwhile, the US as a whole is fast approaching the grim milestone of 100,000 deaths, the highest national tally of any country.

At the height of the city's outbreak in April, a New Yorker was dying almost every two minutes - more than 800 per day, or four times the city’s normal death rate.

Many more families are now opting for cremations in the hopes of holding memorials for loved ones later when restrictions on funeral gatherings are lifted. Green-Wood Crematorium has been overwhelmed with requests. Pre-Covid, they would carry out around 65 cremations a week, now they are exceeding 150. “And that’s with a cap,” their spokesperson said. “Without it we’d probably be doing 300-400, based on the demand.”

The crematorium’s operators are working 16-hour days, seven days a week to keep on top of the load, which does not yet appear to be easing. City authorities even suspended air quality rules to allow crematories to burn round the clock.

One operator describes the work as “crushing” and “exhausting”. He now finds himself hoping for cardboard coffins, which burn much quicker than lacquered wooden ones - saving much-needed time. He dons a hazmat suit, goggles and gloves for his work. He sanitises everything after each casket is sent to the furnace. He cannot afford to take any risks with an asthmatic nine-month-old daughter at home. Strict Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) laws in the US, which protects patients’ privacy, mean the crematorium is not officially allowed to be told which patients died of coronavirus. “The funeral directors come in with the caskets and just say ‘it’s not in the papers, but just be careful with these ones’ and they point to suspected Covid deaths on the list. It’s a really crazy system.”

Source: The Daily Telegraph

COVID 19: The Impact on Funerals

A video interview with funeral director Rod Major of Wells Funeral Services, on the impact the coronavirus pandemic is having on burials, cremations and funeral plans.

Click HERE to Contact Rod with any questions that you might have or to find our how we at Wells Funeral Services can help you at this difficult time.

Video & Interview Credit: Paul Clegg

Coronavirus: Funerals Viewed Online?

FUNERALS of coronavirus victims could be transmitted to mourners over the internet to prevent the spread of the disease if it becomes a pandemic.

Bereaved relatives who have come into close contact with victims would be at greater risk of contracting the illness themselves, meaning the Government could discourage them from holding large funerals where they could potentially infect others.

Official government pandemic planning documents also raise the prospect of crematoria staying permanently open to cope with up to 50,000 extra deaths per week in the worst-case scenario, with funeral services shortened to allow for more cremations per hour.

Mechanical diggers could be used to dig multiple graves at once due to increased need, with refrigerated lorries being used as temporary mortuaries.

The National Association of Funeral Directors (NAFD), which is in regular contact with the Government to plan for a pandemic, said cremation and burial arrangements might need to be adapted if there was a mass outbreak.

Jon Levett, the NAFD chief executive, said in the event of a ban on public gatherings “one option could be the webcasting of funeral services, as many crematoria have these facilities”.

The most up-to-date government plans for pandemics also raise the prospect of funeral services taking place in people’s homes to reduce the length of time needed for ceremonies at overstretched crematoria and cemeteries.

A Home Office document suggests: “In the event that measures need to be taken in order to manage the upper levels of excess deaths envisaged, it may become necessary for funeral directors to restrict the choices available to family members.

“Those arranging and conducting funerals should prepare for basic and shorter services at the chapel, or for memorial services to be held at other venues.” It adds that “a limited choice of types and sizes of coffins” could be offered “to ensure manufacturers can supply to demand”.

The Government’s Coronavirus Action Plan, published this week, pledges to ensure the “dignity” of anyone who dies of the disease.

Source: The Daily Telegraph

Cremation vs Burial: An Ethical Decision?

A perhaps surprising statistic: 75% of funerals in the UK involve cremations. But why do people choose to be cremated instead of buried? Is it solely because it’s cheaper? Or are more people choosing to be cremated because it’s better for the environment?

There is a huge cost difference between being buried and being cremated. A traditional funeral with cremation will be £3,596 on average, compared with a traditional funeral with a burial, which would cost on average £4,561. A direct cremation with no funeral service is cheaper again. There may be the additional cost of burying the ashes in a cemetery to have a special place to visit. But if you choose to scatter the ashes somewhere, that usually does not cost anything.

An Environmental Impact

Burial space is currently very limited in the UK with over half of all cemeteries possibly running out of the room within the next 20 years. However, one cremation will use around 15 kiloWatt of electricity on average and 285 kiloWatt hours of gas. On top of this, 16% of all UK mercury emissions are due to cremations as the mercury in dental fillings, are released into the air!

On the other hand, cremations do not require caskets. These are usually made out of wood acquired from cutting down trees and some are being made out of bronze and copper which may eventually pose risks to the environment because of the mechanical and chemical processes they have gone through.

So, the issue is not clear-cut. No matter what your personal preference, Wells Funeral Services provide both burial and cremation services at unbeatable prices. Contact us to find out more.

Ever thought of joining a Coffin Club?!

How many of us make detailed plans for that final reckoning? How many will decide on the venue, the music, the food and flowers? One thing is almost certain: it will be your relatives who will choose the coffin in the funeral director’s brochure (£265 for cardboard, rising to £1,990 if you want one in oak with the Head of Christ carved on the side).

Cathy Fitz-Gerald’s latest documentary for the BBC World Service, Coffin Club (still available on BBC Sounds). FitzGerald introduces us to the wonderfully cheerful and energetic Katie Williams, who ten years ago set up a Coffin Club to make her own coffin and to gather a group of like-minded others to do the same.

At first she thought her idea would be met by ‘dead silence’, she tells FitzGerald, the pun fully intended. But before long every room in her house was full of carpentry benches and people wielding hammers.

The coffins are painted every colour of the rainbow, lined with luxurious silk, and covered with pictures, letters, personal mementoes of a life. But where do you store a coffin until it’s needed? For this Club’s members, you come across them as a window seat in the living room, covered with cushions, ‘perfect for napping’, or as a chest in which to keep a collection of kites.

Whether you want to build your own coffin or select one from our range, Wells Funeral Services are here to help you with your funeral plans. Contact Rod now and start the conversation.

Graveyards are running out of space

An astonishing 40 per cent of graveyards are forecast to be full by 2030. According to an analysis of 1,304 cemeteries, 293 already have no room left and 226 are forecast to run out of plots within the next 10 years. The burial system has been described as unsustainable as councils scramble to find alternative land.

A £3million site has just been opened in Cardiff with councillors making the case for the expenditure pointing out that the death rate is only going to increase over the next ten years. Many councils are soon going to find themselves at crisis point if they don’t act similarly soon.

Shop Around to Avoid Soaring Prices

As the cost of funerals continues to soar and the Competition & Markets Authority’s enquiry into the charges levied by the funeral industry*, the question to ask yourself is: would you shop around to avoid paying exorbitant prices?

The evidence suggests that few are willing to shop around during such a difficult time, and so only four per cent of mourners end up buying the best priced deal.

When looking into choosing a Funeral Director, please don’t hesitate to contact us at Wells Funeral Services as we firmly believe and strive to make sure that we offer the best possible service and value for money.

*read more on the This Is Money website here

Open as usual over Christmas

As we approach the end of the year, I hope you get a chance to relax and enjoy some precious time with your loved ones. I mean this in the nicest possible way – I hope I don’t hear from you over the Christmas period.

But if for any reason at all you do need my support as a funeral director, rest assured that I continue to be available 24 hours a day and 7 days a week over Christmas and New Year, so please don’t hesitate to pick up the phone if you need me.

Whatever the time of year and whatever the weather, Wells Funeral Services is available and able to assist with whatever is required. We are a professional and trusted business; we are here to help.

Wishing health and happiness to you and yours over the festive season,

Rod.

(For urgent enquiries, contact us 24/7 on 01749 670 100, or for general enquiries please use our online enquiry form.)

The Low-down on Low Cost Funerals

Most people have heard of a ‘pauper’s funeral’, where the local council arranges a simple burial or cremation for someone who has died without the means to pay for a funeral. But did you know there’s also a government-funded scheme in place to help those claiming benefits cover the costs of a funeral? The Funeral Expenses Payment can be used by bereaved families claiming benefits to help pay for anything from the burial or cremation fee to the coffin and flowers.

It was announced earlier this month that the maximum Funeral Expenses Payment will increase by 43% next year, from £700 to £1,000. It’s true that 43% sounds like a hefty increase, but with the average UK funeral now costing over £4,000 that’s still a long way off covering the cost – or is it?

In actual fact, there are much more cost effective options available if budget is a concern, with a simple ‘direct to crematorium’ funeral often being the preferred choice in this case. My prices are clearly stated on this website so the different packages can be easily compared and contrasted, with a simple funeral costing only £1,499. As well as being significantly less than the average UK funeral, this is probably one of the lowest prices in Somerset.

Mind you, you’ll still get the professional care and attention that I give to all the families I come into contact with in my role as a funeral director. My whole approach is about providing the best service I possibly can, to the highest quality standards, regardless of how much the chosen funeral costs.

Some funeral directors may not be interested in assisting with council or HMRC supported funerals, or even low cost funerals for that matter, but that’s not my style at all – I believe everyone is entitled to a respectful send-off and should be treated with dignity, regardless of their financial situation. 

From the outset, I try to get an understanding of what the family wants and needs from the funeral, then we look at the most cost effective options – unlike some funeral companies that will start at the top end of the scale. The family can always opt for something more expensive or unusual if that’s what they want, or what their loved one wanted, and I can tailor any of the packages to suit their wishes or budget. 

For some, as an example, simply realising that they can save a significant amount of money by having the coffin already in place rather than it arriving in a hearse and being carried in by bearers can make a huge difference. 

Or opting for a modest rather than ‘deluxe’ coffin. They don’t always look cheaper either – I remember one lady who said she didn’t want a cheap coffin for her husband, so I gave her a catalogue to look through and in fact the coffin she chose was one of the cheapest!

The most important thing for me, when I’m assisting a bereaved family, is to be able to arrange a funeral that’s within a budget they’ve thought carefully about but that delivers above and beyond what they expect. Just have a look at some of my testimonials and you’ll see that reflected in the feedback I receive.

Regardless of budget, I’m always available to talk about funeral options and costs, or answer any questions that people may have about their own funeral or that of a loved one. If you’re interested in having a chat, with no strings or obligations attached, just give me a call or pop along and see me at Wells Market on a Wednesday.

Rod.

Did you know you can attend your own ‘funeral do’ ?

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At the get-together after a funeral ceremony, you often hear people say things like “he would’ve loved this” or “she would’ve been so happy that you were here”. In some ways, it can seem a real shame that the person whose life is being celebrated isn’t there to enjoy seeing their friends and family gathered together, hearing all the fond words and little stories that people remember about them when they’re gone.

I’m sure that’s one of the many reasons why ‘living funerals’, or ‘pre-funerals’ as they’re also known, are becoming more commonplace – and I for one think that’s a good thing.

It’s true that attending your own ‘funeral do’ is probably not for everyone, but particularly for those who have a terminal illness or whose health is declining, it can be a real blessing in many ways. It gives them a chance to gather their friends and families together, sharing stories and saying their farewells while they’re still in reasonable health.

A living funeral bypasses the ceremony (obviously!) and goes straight to the funeral gathering, where people come together to celebrate the life of someone they know and love. The difference is that the person in question is there to enjoy the event too, saying a few words if they want to and creating more special memories with their loved ones while they still can.

As a funeral director, my ethos is very much that we don’t just do funerals, we celebrate life, so having a good old party with the person you’re there to celebrate seems like a perfectly good idea to me!

What’s more, people are becoming much more budget conscious when it comes to funerals, and having a gathering to celebrate someone’s life before they die can often help those left behind feel liberated to choose something more modest when the time does come. In some cases, they may feel they’ve had a gathering and life celebration already so a simple funeral package without a service might become a more suitable option.

The important thing to bear in mind is, there are no rules! You can have whatever you want – whether that’s attending your own funeral do, having a bubble machine at your funeral service or being buried with a bunch of bananas from the local market.

Each and every funeral is unique and personal. The trick is to find the right people to deliver it exactly how you want it done, with the utmost care and attention.

If you’re planning your own, that means thinking about what you want in advance – what type of funeral service, what style of celebration, what sort of music and flowers?

As humans, we often shy away from thinking about death until it’s on our doorstep, but it’s well worth participating in the conversation while you’re still here – even if you don’t want to participate in the party! 

We offer a comprehensive range of funeral services and funeral packages to suit all requirements and budgets. Please contact us to find out more or have a look at our testimonials to see what other people say about us.

There are No Second Chances with a Funeral

A friend forwarded me a heart-wrenching story earlier this week that appeared on the Daily Mail website. It was about a grieving widow whose husband’s coffin had been dropped by pallbearers as they lowered it into his grave. The coffin ‘fell to pieces on impact’, according to the article, revealing the man’s dead body to hundreds of funeral-goers.

Anyone with any compassion will be horrified by that story, by the shock and pain and heartache that his family and friends will undoubtedly have felt. Worst still, his widow said that they had “paid extra for a solid oak coffin with strong gold handles.”

Without doubt, a solid oak coffin would not have broken like that. Worst case scenario, the lid may have come off if the coffin was dropped but the fact that it smashed was entirely down to the inferior quality of the materials – which, the family later found out later, was in fact MDF!

You’d think this story couldn’t get any worse, but it seems that pallbearers then ran away, leaving the man’s children to jump into the grave and recover his body. The widow has since taken the funeral directors to court and has just accepted a settlement fee, hence the article this week.

Clearly this whole situation has been absolutely horrendous for the family. I can’t imagine how you’d deal with that – the trauma and mayhem on the day; the sleepless nights afterwards. Thankfully for the rest of us, this is an extremely unusual case, but the funeral directors in question have a lot to answer for!

People put a huge amount of trust in their chosen funeral director to deliver a fitting send-off for their loved one, enabling those left behind to remember and celebrate their life. There is no excuse for cutting corners – you only get one chance with a funeral and it absolutely must be done right.

If someone has never had to organise a funeral before, it can be hard to know where to start when choosing a funeral director – although I do have some good tips on this link so feel free to have a look. You need to find someone you can trust though so generally speaking recommendations are the key, either from people you know or from online testimonials like Google Reviews.

Personally, I know that I give the best quality and service that I possibly can, as I make that a matter of principle. Every funeral I’ve handled has been done to the best of my ability. But it’s about more than that – it’s about care and attention. The process and the paperwork I’ve done many times so that’s usually fairly straightforward, but in every case the people involved are different and I never forget that.

Whether the people who come to see me want ‘the full works’ cathedral funeral for their loved one or a much more modest affair, the focus for me is always on making sure it’s delivered to the highest standard. I make sure people know that they can always pick up the phone or send me a text, day or night, and it’s me they deal with from start to finish, from their first phone call right through to the funeral service and beyond.

I’m a great believer that you’re only as good as the last funeral you’ve delivered, so feel free to have a look through my testimonials and make your own conclusions!