These brief notes are intended solely to provide guidance about the immediate tasks that need to be accomplished after a death. There may be many matters that need your attention and we are here to ensure that you get the help you need.
After The Death: If the death has occurred in a Hospital, you may well have been given a "Bereavement Brochure" by hospital staff detailing much of what is contained here. If however, the death has occurred at a private residence or care home, then usually the first act is to remove the deceased to our funeral home in Nailsworth or Bussage, as appropriate. (Refer also to "Care Of The Deceased").
Registering the death is covered in detail under a separate heading.
Arranging The Funeral: At the time of first contact with you, your funeral director will ask about making an appointment to meet with you, either at our office or your home, to discuss the funeral arrangements. There is no hurry to meet and make arrangements - you may prefer to contact us again at a later stage to arrange an appointment, when you and maybe other relatives have had a chance to gather your thoughts. To help prepare for when you do meet with the funeral director, a guide to the principal points to be considered is provided below:
Venue for the funeral service: Church / Chapel, Crematorium Chapel or other venue?
Which of the following types of funeral service / ceremony would be most appropriate in your particular circumstances?:
a) A religious service (in which case, do you know which denomination the deceased belonged to?)
b) A Non-religious (Humanist) funeral ceremony
c) A Civil Ceremony (usually a combination of religious & humanist elements to reflect individual personal beliefs)
Hymns / music: do you have any specific chosen hymns, or would a spoken service be more appropriate. Either way, is recorded music (of your choice) also to be incorporated?
When burial is chosen: which Churchyard or Cemetery? New grave (single or double-depth) or re-opening of existing / pre-purchased plot?
When cremation is chosen: ashes to be scattered in Crematorium Garden Of Remembrance / interred in Churchyard/Cemetery / returned to family for private scattering?
Transport: family mourners using own transport or is/are limousine(s) required? Is the cortege to start from a specific address or is everyone to meet at the Church / Crematorium?
Choice of coffin: traditional wood range / woven materials range / individual, bespoke style?
Will you wish to see the deceased in our Chapel Of Rest? Would you prefer the deceased to be dressed in their own clothes or would you like us to provide a simple gown?
Jewellery: if deceased was wearing any jewellery is this to be removed or remain in situ?
Newspaper notices: are these required? To be placed in local or national papers?
Donations in lieu of flowers? If so, which charity is to be your chosen recipient?
Family flowers: us to order on your behalf or you to approach florist yourselves?
Are printed order of service sheets required?
This list is not exhaustive and there may be many other small but vital details to be discussed according to each individual situation. The important thing to remember however, is that our role is to ensure that all aspects of the arrangements are discussed with you and to ensure that the arrangements best reflect individual clients' wishes and circumstances. Obviously, funeral expenses are an important consideration, and throughout the arrangement process you will be kept fully informed of costs. Copies of our company price list are freely available, and an individual itemised estimate of expenses will be submitted to you when the funeral arrangements have been made.
Deaths Reported To The Coroner : When someone has died suddenly and unexpectedly and the deceased's Doctor is unable to issue a "Cause Of Death Certificate", or if the death occurred in unnatural or suspicious circumstances, then the Coroner is informed. In such cases, a post mortem examination may be ordered by the Coroner and the body will have to be removed to the County Mortuary, located at The Gloucestershire Coroner's Court Complex, Corinium Avenue, Barnwood, Gloucester. Although the Coroner's involvement rarely delays the funeral beyond the normal timescale, some procedures involved in arranging the funeral - particularly registering the death - occur in a slightly different way with Coroner's cases, so you will be advised by our funeral directors of exactly what to do.
Care Of The Deceased Please be assured that once the deceased has been removed to our funeral home, there will be plenty of opportunity to see the person again in our Chapel Of Rest should you wish. Indeed this is one of the questions that you will be asked when making the arrangements with your funeral director. It is important to note that once the deceased is in our care, presentation of the body for viewing is really only practical AFTER arrangements have been made. This is because there will be matters affecting presentation - e.g. choice of coffin, dressing in own clothes or a shroud/gown, etc. - matters which will be discussed as an integral part of the process of making funeral arrangements.
Registering The Death:
Although you can proceed with making arrangements, the funeral itself cannot take place until the death has been registered. The GP or hospital doctor who attended the deceased during the final stages of their illness will propose a cause of death, which will then be shared with the Medical Examiner - a senior medical official who provides independent scrutiny of all non-coronial deaths. As part of that process the ME will contact you direct, to ask if you have any questions or concerns about the death.
A duly completed 'Medical Cause Of Death Certificate' will then be forwarded to the Gloucestershire Registration Service and you will be asked to arrange an appointment to register the death within the following 5 days.
Your appointment can take place at whichever Register Office in the county is most convenient for you visit.
You can book your appointment by calling the Registration Service on (01452) 425060; or you can book it online by going to
www.gloucestershire.gov.uk/registration
Refer to the following section for details about the registration process itself.
Information required to register a death:
1."Medical Certificate of Cause of Death" (emailed directly to the Registration Service by the deceased's doctor, or by the hospital)
2. Date and place of death.
3. Usual address.
4. Full names and surname
5. Maiden name.
6. Date and place of birth.
7. Occupation.
8. Husband's occupation.
9. Whether the deceased was in receipt of any DWP benefit.
10. Age of surviving spouse.
11. Deceased's Medical Card. (If it can be found. It is not essential for Registration of a death).
12. If the deceased was in receipt of any "Government Pension" e.g. Armed Services, Police, Fire, Civil Service etc, the Registrar will need to know the registration number of the pension so that he/she may notify the appropriate department for them to make the appropriate adjustments for the widow/widower as speedily as possible.
CERTIFICATES THE REGISTRAR WILL ISSUE:
1) Registrar's Certificate for Burial or Cremation (a.k.a. the 'green form')
You must deliver this document to the funeral director as soon as you have received it, as it needs to be passed on to the burial/cremation authority in order for the funeral to proceed.
2) Certified Copies of an Entry (in the death register)
The Registrar will give you the opportunity to purchase copies of the entry in the official death register. These "certified copies" constitute death certificates, and are used to administer the deceased's estate. You are advised to buy at least two copies, regardless of the size or complexity of the deceased's affairs.
3) The Tell Us Once system
During your registration appointment the registrar will give you a unique code for the Tell Us Once service. This will enable you to inform various government and local council services of the death and it should take away the need for you to contact those services individually.
ALL CERTIFICATES AND THEIR PURPOSE WILL BE EXPLAINED TO YOU BY THE REGISTRAR AT THE TIME OF ISSUE.
NewlyBereaved.PDF
NewlyBereavedCoroner.PDF