We know that planning a funeral can feel overwhelming, and you may have many questions. Here, we’ve answered some of the most common ones to help guide you through the process – but if you need anything else, we’re always just a phone call away.
If your loved one is at home and their death has been expected, you should call their attending practitioner (Doctor) in the first instance. Alternatively, you can call 111 for advice and assistance. The death must be verified by a medical professional before we are allowed to attend and bring your loved one into our care, sometimes out of hours, this may be a qualified nurse from the nursing team who are responsible for overseeing your loved one’s care. If the doctor has seen your loved one during their lifetime and they are confident with their cause of death they are able to complete the Medical Certificate Cause of Death (MCCD) and forward this on (electronically) to a Medical Examiner.
Medical Examiners are senior medical practitioners that are not involved in the care of the deceased person and therefore are able to provide independent scrutiny of all deaths. They will review the MCCD as provided by the medical practitioner, check all medical history, liaise with the doctor and you as a family and determine whether the stated cause of death is sufficient or if any queries or concerns are raised. If there are any discrepancies during this process, the medical examiner may refer the death to the Coroner for investigation. If the medical examiner is happy with the MCCD they will forward the relevant paperwork to the Registrar’s office (electronically) to enable registration to take place.
Once your loved one’s death has been verified, please do give us a call and we will attend as quickly as we can. We provide a 24 hour a day service, so no matter what time day or night, please just give us a call and we will happily assist in any way that we can.
If possible, we always suggest to families to let the care home or hospice know that we will be your chosen funeral directors to look after your loved one when the need arises. This often reduces delays and can alleviate stress at the time of need. The process is very much the same as an expected death within the home, however some care homes and hospice setting have their own in-house medical team which can sometimes make the process of verification much quicker than if your loved one was at home. Although it may be the case that we are able to attend faster, you are by no means restricted to calling us straight away, If you have family travelling to see you loved one for example or you would like to spend a little more time with them, this is absolutely fine, please do let us know and we will attend at a time that is convenient to you.
If the your loved one has passed away in hospital the medical practitioner there will issue the MCCD. Your loved one will be taken to the hospital mortuary and you will be contacted by the hospital bereavement team who will provide next steps to you as a family. You may at this point let the bereavement office know that we will be assisting you with funeral arrangements or alternatively you can give us a call and we can make enquiries and liaise with the bereavement team and hospital mortuary on your behalf. Your loved one will be kept within the hospital until the relevant paperwork has been completed and at this point the mortuary will allow the release of your loved one into our care. Unfortunately, sometimes this can be several days, but is completely out of our control, we will however, keep you informed every step of the way.
If you do not know the deceased persons GP or the death has not been expected and is sudden, it is imperative to call 999 and explain the situation. The call handler will often dispatch an ambulance to the address and then a police officer will be called to file a report for the Coroner. The Coroner’s ambulance will attend the address and take your loved one into the care of the coroners mortuary (often a hospital).
The Coroner will determine if a clear cause of death can be ascertained or if a postmortem examination is required. An investigation into the death of the deceased person will be resumed and potentially a further inquest held at a later date, however, often the Coroner will release the body of the deceased person and issue an interim death certificate.
This allows a funeral to take place prior to inquest. Please do call us at anytime for advice. Often this process can take anything from seven to fourteen days to complete and is unfortunately completely out of our control, however, we are able to liaise with the Coroner’s office on your behalf and will keep you informed every step of the way.
Once the medical cause of death certificate has been issued by the medical professional overseeing your loved one’s care and the medical examiner has overseen paperwork, they will issue the registrar with relevant paperwork for death registration to take place. The registrar’s office will give you a call upon receiving paperwork and will book you an appointment in person to register your loved ones death at a convenient time for you.
You can register a person’s death if you are:
Yes, we have top of the range mortuary facilities at our Woodbridge funeral home.
Absolutely! We are proud members of the National Association of Funeral Directors. We adhere to a strict code of conduct and are regularly inspected by officials from the Association.
In order to initially be accepted as a member, each firm is meticulously inspected. All policies, working practices, documentation processes and identification processes within the funeral home are examined along with a full and thorough check of facilities provided and staff knowledge and experience is gauged and assessed.
It is NOT a legal requirement for funeral directors to be part of a trade association and the industry as a whole is unregulated. We feel that this is absolutely shocking, and by opening our doors to the strict rules and regulations of the National Association of Funeral Directors, we hope to give reassurance to our families that we are working in an acceptable, professional and caring manner at ALL TIMES.
Both Andrew and Nikki have over 20 years combined experience within the funeral industry and are Qualified Funeral Directors who have both achieved The National Association of Funeral Directors Level 4 Higher Diploma in Funeral Directing.
We may be a young team; however, we are all highly trained and have experience in all aspects of funeral care and the options that are available to families.
We are experienced in providing traditional services, non-traditional services, multi faith funerals, simple affairs and everything in between!
We regularly organise and conduct all sizes of funeral services, from intimate funerals with just a few people in attendance to extremely large attendances with multiple venue locations. We will go above and beyond to make sure we provide an excellent service that is second to none.
Absolutely! This is actively encouraged within Markham Funeral Service! We are extremely proud of our facilities and would be delighted to show you around with no obligation to make sure we are the right fit for your family and your loved one. Please feel free to contact us anytime if you would like to meet us and have look at what we are able to provide.
Yes, we provide chapel visits in our chapel of rest at our Woodbridge office. We do not charge for this and NEVER WILL. We do not have a chapel of rest at our Leiston arrangement office; however, we will happily provide transport for you (free of charge) should you wish to visit your loved one at our Woodbridge office if required.
Anything you wish! We are very happy to dress your loved one in their favourite suit, dress, gardening clothes, walking clothes, bike leathers etc or equally some comfy pyjamas, the choice is very much your own. Alternatively, we can provide a beautiful satin gown if you prefer.
You are most welcome to place any items you wish with your loved one. Some families choose to place letters, photographs, teddy bears, a favourite blanket or even a favourite packet of sweets or biscuits with their loved one.
Yes, we cater for all types of funeral services. We are extremely experienced in traditional services and truly respect the grace and customary requirements for many different faiths. We are also very open minded when it comes to personalising a funeral. We will help guide and support you in any way that we can to ensure a fitting farewell.
We follow extremely strict identification protocols from the very moment that we bring your loved one into our care, to the moment they are taken to the crematorium. Once a coffin is sealed and taken to a crematorium it is illegal for it to be re-opened. Upon receipt of a coffin at a crematorium the name plate is checked by a member of staff and strict identification protocols are followed throughout the process, from arrival, right through to a person’s ashes being placed in an urn. Every cremation that takes place is individual. Upon collection of your loved one’s ashes, we have a strict identification and storage procedure at the Funeral Home. We can reassure you that your loved one’s ashes will be safe and cared for, for as long as you may need.
Yes you may! We will support you in any way that we can as there are many ways you can participate. Some family members may like to be a family bearer on the day and help us carry the coffin, some people like to read a poem or speak about their loved one during the service, you may wish to walk in front of the hearse with the Funeral Director, bring the family dog along, choose some music or indeed sing or play music. If there is an idea, please do let us know and we will do all we can to make it happen.
If you do not wish to attend a committal (either burial or cremation) that is absolutely fine. We often have families choosing to have a separate service to a committal. Be rest assured we will provide a dignified and professional burial or cremation committal for your loved one even if you do not attend.
No not at all. We have excellent relationships and contacts with many local non-traditional venues and regularly provide funeral services at different locations. We have many different venues that we can recommend for both small intimate capacity venues to extremely large capacity venues. We have provided services at varying outside venues, woodland venues, village halls, wedding venues, family homes, farm buildings, traditional barns, pubs, and many more!
