How to Plan a Funeral Service Checklist

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When planning a funeral, emotions can be high and so it’s easy to forget something. From flowers to transportation, there’s a lot to consider for this important day. We’ve put together a list of the key things to plan in to make sure your loved one’s life is celebrated how they wanted it to be.

To make sure you have everything covered for the funeral service of your loved one, the below checklist covers all the fundamental elements.

Decide on a budget

One of the first things you will need to settle on is a budget for the event. It is important to decide this right at the beginning so you can make informed decisions later on. The average funeral cost was £3837 in 2020, but this of course changes depending on what kind of funeral you choose.

Click here for more information on the cost of funerals.

Find a funeral director

If you decide you would like to pay for a funeral director to help with the organisation of the service, you will need to find one which suits your budget and can provide the service your loved one wanted. Prices can vary greatly across the country, but you can use our free search tool to find one local to you, in your price range.

Cremation or burial?

The next thing to consider is whether the deceased wished to be cremated or buried. Both methods are widely used across the UK, with the average cost of a burial at around £4,383 and the average cost for a cremation at £3,306 in 2020. For more information on the differences between cremation and burials, click here.

Choose the special touches

The next stage is to pick out all the things which will make the funeral service unique to the one you are celebrating. This can be done through the choice of coffin, urn or casket, as well as flowers, music, readings and, if it is a burial, the outfit you dress them in. If budget is a concern, this is also an area where you can save money and opt for a simpler service. For ideas on planning a uniquely beautiful funeral, take a look at some of our advice articles below:

Organise an Order of Service

Every Order of Service is personalised. It is essentially the plan of what will happen at the funeral and will follow the wishes of the deceased. Depending on the person you are remembering, this may include:

The Order of Service can be printed for those attending and are often kept as a memory of the day. For more information on planning an Order of Service, click here.

Decide who will attend

Next, you need to decide who you wish to be present at the event. Did your deceased want a close, personal service, or do they wish for their life to be celebrated with their wider circles? Would you be comfortable with children attending? How many guests can the venue accommodate?

Possible groups of guests to consider might be:

Transportation plans

Choosing the right transportation that’s not just for your guests, but for the deceased, is another chance to celebrate what made your loved one unique. For transportation of the deceased, a traditional hearse can be used, or something more distinctive such as an entourage of antique cars or even a motorcycle hearse.

For guest transportation, you may need to consider mobility issues for elderly or disabled attendees as well as the number of attendees requiring transport.

Send the invitations

The final stage is to invite your guests. Make sure to give people as much notice as possible, so that as many people who wish to attend can. It is important that on the invite, you include any details such as:

There are plenty of templates available online which can help you find the right wording; many families use the invitation as a chance to create something unique to the individual being mourned.

 

If you’re looking for a funeral director, use our free search tool to find and compare funeral directors in your area.  Here you can find the contact details and pricing quotes directly from directors local to you.

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Funeral Director fees

The price quoted contains the Funeral Director fees for a simple funeral. This includes:

  • Funeral Director fees for meetings, paperwork and running the funeral
  • Collection of the deceased and care prior to funeral
  • Hearse or appropriate vehicle for transport to the funeral
  • Basic coffin

The Funeral Director fees quoted do not include third party costs (often called disbursements). The Funeral Director will guide you through your options. These costs are:

  • Cremation or burial fees
  • Medical certificate for cremation
  • Clergy or officiant fee for conducting the ceremony

In addition to the disbursements you may want to discuss optional costs with your Funeral Director - these could include:

  • Funeral flowers
  • Memorial (venue hire, catering etc)
  • Memorial headstone
  • Orders of service
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What is a Direct Cremation?

A Direct Cremation is an alternative to the traditional funeral. This involves the cremation of the deceased without a funeral service. A Direct Cremation is generally the most economic option because costs of the coffin, preparation of the body, funeral service and expensive transportation are not included. However, many people choose Direct Cremations for reasons other than expense, for example:

  • - Wanting to have a memorial at a different time to the cremation
  • - Expressed desire from the deceased to not have a ceremony
  • - Individuals with relatives who face big physical or geographical challenges in coming together for a ceremony

The prices quoted for Direct Cremations include:

  • All charges, meetings and paperwork for the cremation
  • Collection of deceased and care prior to cremation
  • A simple coffin and urn for the ashes
  • Cremation fees and delivery of ashes to the family
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Attended funeral

This is Funeral Choice’s best estimate of this Funeral Director’s fees for an Attended Funeral, which is where family and friends have a ceremony or service for the deceased person at the same time as they attend their burial or cremation.

This price includes the following:

  • Taking care of all necessary legal and administrative arrangements
  • Collecting and transporting the deceased person from the place of death (normally within 15 miles of the funeral director’s premises) into the funeral director’s care
  • Care of the deceased person before the funeral in appropriate facilities.
  • Providing a suitable coffin
  • Optional viewing of the deceased person for family and friends, by appointment with the funeral director
  • At a date and time you agree with the funeral director, taking the deceased person direct to the agreed cemetery or crematorium (normally within 20 miles of the funeral director’s premises) in a hearse or other appropriate vehicle

In addition to the Funeral Director’s fee, there will be third party costs to consider (sometimes called disbursements) to cover the other aspects of a funeral (such as the crematorium or burial fees). Your chosen Funeral Director will be able to provide these for you.

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Unattended funeral

This is Funeral Choice’s best estimate of this Funeral Director’s fees and the crematorium fee for an Unattended Funeral, which is where family and friends may choose to have a ceremony, event or service for the deceased person, but they do not attend the burial or cremation itself. This is also known as a Direct Cremation.

This price includes the following:

  • Funeral Director's fees
  • Crematorium fee (for an unattended funeral) as selected by the Funeral Director

In addition to this fee, there might be additional third party costs to consider (sometimes called disbursements). Your chosen Funeral Director will be able to explain these for you.

If you wish to attend the funeral, you should view the “Attended Funeral” price instead.

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Why is this price Estimated?

We work hard to ensure the Funeral Director Fees we display are accurate and up to date. However, unlike with our partners, we cannot guarantee this price is correct today.

Funeral Director fees

The price quoted contains the Funeral Director fees for a simple funeral. This includes:

  • Funeral Director fees for meetings, paperwork and running the funeral
  • Collection of the deceased and care prior to funeral
  • Hearse or appropriate vehicle for transport to the funeral
  • Basic coffin

The Funeral Director fees quoted do not include third party costs (often called disbursements). The Funeral Director will guide you through your options. These costs are:

  • Cremation or burial fees
  • Medical certificate for cremation
  • Clergy or officiant fee for conducting the ceremony

In addition to the disbursements you may want to discuss optional costs with your Funeral Director - these could include:

  • Funeral flowers
  • Memorial (venue hire, catering etc)
  • Memorial headstone
  • Orders of service
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Funeral Choice charity donation

To redeem the £20 charity donation all you have to do is select the charity from the dropdown list in the Make Contact form. Once you have confirmed arrangements with that funeral director send us an email to info@yourfuneralchoice.com confirming the service has been arranged. After we receive this email we will make the donation to the chosen charity and confirm back to you.

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