If the deceased has made a will, this may contain important information about their wishes for their funeral. Once you have registered the death at the Registrars Office and collected the green form, your funeral director will be able to make detailed arrangements for the funeral in accordance with the family’s wishes.

For Deaths Referred to the Coroner:

The Coroner’s officers will give advise what to do in this instance and your funeral director will liaise with the Coroner on your behalf.

Funeral Details

You may want to discuss the funeral with your local priest or other religious representative, or you may prefer for the funeral director to do this on your behalf.  Some families request non-religious funerals and details of these arrangements should be discussed with your funeral director.

Cremation

By law, there is additional documentation required for cremation.  To process this documentation through all stages, i.e. from the hospital medical staff through to the final check by an independent doctor at the crematorium (the medical referee) can take 7 working days.  The bereavement advisers will commence this process when they are advised of the cremation. Recent chanages in the cremation process allows a representative of the family to view the forms completed by the doctors. Please advise your funeral director if you want to do this and they will ensure this is recorded on your documentation. This may cause a delay in the funeral and a charge may be made.

Paying for a Funeral

If you arrange for a funeral, you are responsible for paying the costs involved. It is wise to check if there are sufficient funds.  If you receive certain kinds of Benefit/s or if for any other reason you do not have enough money to pay for the funeral, you should seek advice from the Benefit Agency – http://www.dwp.gov.uk/

Notification of a Death in a Newspaper

You may wish to ask the funeral director to guide you on wording and arrangements.