Family Comment
What Happens On The Day?
Cremation
If we are travelling direct to the church or crematorium you will be greeted by the funeral director there. If not the cortege will arrive at the agreed address at the time given to you on your confirmation letter (please allow us a couple of minutes either side of this time for variations in the volume of traffic).
If we are leaving from a home address our funeral director will greet you at your door, and escort you and your family to the limousine(s) if any have been ordered. Once everyone is seated, the funeral director will walk the cortege away from the house, before getting into the hearse and travelling to the place of service.
If the service prior to cremation takes place in a church, on arrival, the funeral director will first go and speak with the minister, then come and collect you when everything is ready.
The funeral director will now ask whether you would like to follow the coffin or if you would prefer to be seated first. If you wish to be seated first the funeral director will guide you to your seats.
If you wish to follow, the coffin will be taken in to the church and you will be asked to follow behind. Once inside the Funeral Director will guide you to your seats. At the end of the service, the coffin will be taken out of church and placed on to the hearse to go to the Crematorium. You will be asked to lead the mourners out of church, behind the coffin.
At the crematorium, the coffin is taken in to the chapel, and placed on the catafalque. Again, you will be invited to follow behind the coffin, and the Funeral Director will show you to your seats. After the service, the Funeral Director will lead you to the courtyard to look at the flowers and to thank mourners for attending.
The main family flowers are usually placed on top of the coffin and will stay there until the chapel is empty at which point the Funeral Director will collect them and bring them out. If you wish your flowers to stay with the coffin for the cremation please inform us.
Following the committal service at the crematorium, the limousine(s) if ordered will take you back to an address of your choice, or to a reception venue. Please advise us of the return destination prior to theday of the funeral to ensure our chauffeurs can be instructed accordingly.
Burial
If we are travelling direct to the church or graveside you will be greeted by the funeral director there. If not the cortege will arrive at the agreed address at the time given to you on your confirmation letter (please allow us a couple of minutes either side of this time for variations in the volume of traffic).
If we are leaving from a home address our funeral director will greet you at your door, and escort you and your family to the limousine(s) if any have been ordered. Once everyone is seated, the funeral director will walk the cortege away from the house, before getting into the hearse and travelling to the place of service.
At a church, the funeral director will first go and speak with the minister, then come and collect you when everything is ready. The funeral director will now ask whether you would like to follow the coffin of if you would prefer to be seated first. Whatever you decide the funeral director will guide you to your seats.
The funeral director will inform you as to where they will be standing during the service so you can call upon them if you need to. At the end of the service, the coffin will be taken out of church, and placed on to the hearse to travel to the cemetery.
At the cemetery, the funeral director will lead the way to the grave and you will be asked to follow behind the coffin. You may gather around the grave, whilst the committal takes place, and you will be invited to scatter earth/holy water into the grave if appropriate. Some people also choose to bring single stemmed flowers for the same purpose.
Please give thought to suitable footwear when attending a burial in winter/wet weather, as the ground can be quite slippery and uneven.
The funeral director will then lead you to look at the flowers, which will be laid out along the ground. Once you have left the cemetery, the flowers will be placed on to the grave. If you wish your floral tribute to remain on the coffin whilst it is lowered, then please tell us in advance.
Following the committal service at the cemetery, the limousine(s) if ordered will take you back to an address of your choice, or to a reception venue. Please advise us of the return destination prior to the day of the funeral to ensure our chauffeurs can be instructed accordingly.
Every funeral is different but we hope this gives you some idea as to what to expect on the day. Your funeral director is there to assist and to make sure everything runs smoothly, if you have any questions or concerns then please just ask.
