First Steps
Contact the funeral director – Your funeral director will be able to give you the information you need at this early stage to help with obtaining the Medical Certificate of Cause of Death and registering the death; they will also give you advice and guidance on the next steps.
There are many decisions to make during the arranging process, but one of the first and most important decisions to make will be to decide if the person is to be buried or cremated.
Please keep reading for more information on the procedure for registering a death.
Registering the Death
Following a death, the GP or hospital doctor will issue the ‘Medical Certificate of Cause of Death’ (MCCD). This will be done after your loved one’s medical notes have been reviewed and discussed with the Medical Examiner or Coroner. This certificate will normally be completed within 2 – 4days, but may take longer. Where there is no involvement from the Coroner, the Medical Examiner will email the certificate directly to the relevant Registrar’s office, and you will be notified by them once this has been done. You will then be able to contact the Register Office to book an appointment to register the death (registration will normally be done at the Register Office in the town or sub-district where the death occurred).
Once the MCCD has been issued, you should try and register the death within 5days. Normally this will be done by a relative, or by someone present at the time of death – this person is called the ‘informant’. If there is no next of kin, and there was no-one present at the time of death, then the Registrar will advise you on who should register.
Once the death has been registered, the Registrar will issue the ‘Certificate for Burial or Cremation’ (often referred to as ‘the green form’). This certificate should be passed to the Funeral Director as soon as possible.
The Registrar will also provide the informant with a certified copy of the entry into the register, also known as the ‘Death Certificate’. These certificates are needed when dealing with banks, building societies, pension and insurance companies, and cost £12.50 each; additional copies can be purchased at a later point should you require more. The registrar will also issue the Certificate of Registration of Death (white form); this form is for DWP purposes.
If the Coroner has been involved
Sometimes a person can die with no warning or prior illness, or they may die because of an accident. Whatever the circumstances, a sudden or unexpected death will need to be investigated by the coroner, and if necessary, the person might have a post-mortem examination. You will be kept informed by the Coroner’s office, and the Funeral Director can offer guidance throughout this process.
You will be advised by the Coroner’s office regarding the requirements of registering the death and depending on the outcome of the Coroner’s investigation, and post-mortem if one was needed, registration may take place as usual, or it may be delayed until an inquest has been held. If the usual registration process is going to be delayed, then the Coroner will issue Interim Death Certificates so the deceased’s financial matters can be dealt with. A certificate permitting the burial or cremation to go ahead will either be issued by the Registrar or Coroner, allowing the funeral to take place without any further delay.
Struggling with Bereavement
Burial or Cremation
It can be difficult to decide whether to arrange a burial or a cremation, especially if the person left no instructions. Certain factors such as religious beliefs and financial restrictions can impact this decision.
Burial
Depending on the chosen burial ground, a burial will be in either a single, double, or in some locations, a triple depth grave, meaning other family members could be buried together. Depending on the regulations for your chosen burial ground, you can have a headstone or other memorial on the grave, allowing you to create a lasting tribute and a focal point when visiting.
Cremation
A cremation will offer you more options for the final resting place of your loved one’s ashes. You may then decide to keep the ashes at home, this could be in the short term, or long term, and if you move away, the ashes can be taken with you. You may prefer to have them interred into a grave plot and have a memorial as a lasting tribute; alternatively, they could be scattered privately.
Ashes can be incorporated into pieces of jewellery or other tokens as a lasting keepsake. If desired, ashes can be left at the crematorium to be scattered in their Garden of Remembrance.
Options for Burial
There are several things to consider when choosing burial, as rules and regulations can differ in a local authority cemetery to those in a churchyard or a woodland burial ground.
A funeral or memorial service can be held separately in a church, or other place of worship, either before or after the burial takes place; alternatively, the funeral service can be taken at the graveside.
Other burial options are available, such as – burial at sea and burial in your own garden or field. There are strict rules and regulations regarding burials of this nature. If you would like to know more, please speak to the Funeral Director.
Local Cemetery
Most burials now take place in the Local Authority Cemetery situated in the area where the deceased person lived.
Most cemeteries have designated areas for different faiths and religions, for children and babies, and for cremated remains.
A New Grave Plot – A plot will need to be purchased before the funeral takes place, with most graves being either double or triple depth, meaning a further one or two burials can take place in the future.
The cost of the plot will usually depend on whether the deceased person was a local resident or not, with some fees doubling or tripling for ‘non-residents’.
Each time the grave is opened for a burial to take place, a charge will be made by the council – this is usually referred to as the ‘interment fee’. A memorial can be placed on the grave, and in most cemeteries, you can have a choice of style, size, colour, and finish of the memorial. A fee will also need to be paid to the local authority to place a new memorial on the grave.
An Existing Grave Plot – If you already own a grave plot in your chosen cemetery, and there is room in the grave, then you will only need to pay the interment fee. If there is a headstone or memorial on the grave, this will normally have to be removed so the grave can be reopened.
A fee will also need to be paid to the local authority to have an additional inscription added to an existing headstone.
Churchyard
Burials in churchyards are becoming less common due to lack of space. Some churchyards will have extended into nearby land which may be managed by the local parish council while still following Church of England rules.
Providing the deceased person lived or died within the parish boundaries, and there is room, then the person will normally be entitled to be buried in the churchyard should they wish, regardless of their faith, denomination, or religious beliefs.
A New Grave Plot – A plot does not need to be purchased, but a fee will be payable to the church or parish council for the right to bury the person; in addition, there will be a fee for grave preparation (grave digging).
Graves will usually be single or double depth; if double, a second burial could take place in the future.
A memorial can be placed on the grave, but unlike local authority cemeteries, the options of style, colour, finish, and size of memorial are likely to be very limited.
A fee will also need to be paid to the church or parish council to place a memorial on the grave.
An Existing Grave – If you have an existing family grave in the churchyard and there is room in the grave, then the grave can be reopened. A fee will be payable to the church or parish council for the right to bury the person; in addition, there will be a fee for grave preparation (grave digging).
If there is a headstone or memorial on the grave, this will normally have to be removed so the grave can be opened. A fee will also need to be paid to the church or parish council to have an additional inscription added to an existing memorial.
Woodland Burial
Burials in a woodland setting are becoming more popular, not only by those who wish to be closer to nature, but by those becoming increasingly conscious of environmental impacts.
At some burial sites you can chose to have a tree planted, but most do not allow headstones or memorials to be placed on the grave.
Coffins will be made of materials such a wicker, willow or cardboard with an aim to biodegrade quickly.
Embalming of the deceased is not normally permitted for those having a woodland burial.
A New Plot – You will need to purchase a plot before the funeral takes place. This could be a plot for one burial, or at some burial grounds, you can have the option to buy a double burial plot, or even a Family Woodland Nook for future burials and ashes interments.
A burial fee will also be payable at the time of the funeral.
An Existing Grave – If you have an existing family grave in the burial ground, and there is room in the grave, then the grave can be reopened. A burial fee will be payable at the time of the funeral.
Options for Cremation
Cremations now account for over 80% of all funerals in the UK, and while most people use the crematorium closest to where the deceased person lived, there are no restrictions on which crematorium you can use, meaning a person can be cremated in a place other than where they lived at the time of their death, perhaps returning to an area where they used to live, or where their family lives.
As most crematoria have music systems and the option to webcast a funeral service, they make the ideal place to hold a funeral service, whether religious or non-religious.
A funeral or memorial service can be held separately in a church, or other place of worship, either before or after the cremation takes place if preferred.
Crematoriums usually have a Garden of Remembrance where ashes can be scattered. Some have memorial gardens where rose bushes can be planted in memory of the person who has died, or a special vault or columbarium that can be leased, usually for a period of 5 or 10years, where ashes can be housed.
As well as offering direct cremations, where there is no funeral service for mourners to attend, most crematoria also offer an early morning funeral at a reduced cost where close family can attend a short service.