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Bereavement

  • In times of bereavement

    In the unfortunate event that a person has passed away, there are three things that must be done in the first few days:
    – Get a medical certificate from your GP or hospital doctor (this is necessary to register the death)
    – Register the death within 5 days. You will then receive the necessary documents for the funeral
    – Make the necessary funeral arrangements

  • Register the death

    If the death has been reported to the coroner they must give permission before registering the death.
    You can register the death if you are a relative, a witness to the death, a hospital administrator or the person making the arrangements with the funeral directors.
    You can use the ‘register a death’ page on the gov.uk website that will guide you through the process.

  • Arrange the funeral

    The funeral can usually only take place after the death is registered. Most people use a funeral director, though you can arrange a funeral yourself.

    Funeral directors
    Choose a funeral director who’s a member of one of the following:
    – National association of funeral directors
    – Society of allied and independent funeral directors
    These organisations have codes of practice – they must give you a price list when asked.
    Some local councils run their own The British humanist association website can also help with non-religious funerals.

    Arranging the funeral yourself
    Contact the cemeteries and crematorium department of your local council to arrange a funeral yourself.

    Funeral costs
    Funeral costs can include:
    – Funeral director fees
    – The funeral director will pay for ‘disbursements’ or ‘third-party costs’ on your behalf. This includes, crematorium or cemetery fees, or a newspaper announcement about the death
    – Local authority burial or cremation fees

    Funeral directors may list all these costs in their quotes.

Page published: 22 November 2023
Last updated: 24 December 2024