The Role of a Funeral Director

Funeral directors are there to help you plan and personalise a funeral and to make sure everything goes smoothly.

There’s no rush to make decisions after someone’s died, so our funeral directors give you space and time to think. When you’re ready, we’ll pop a date in the diary that works for you and that’s when we’ll help you arrange the funeral.

When you meet with us, we’ll find out what matters to you the most. We’ll learn all about the person who’s died and whether they had special wishes for their funeral. We’ll ask the important questions on whether it’s a burial or a cremation, if you’d like us to carry the coffin or if family and friends will want to do that, and whether you’re looking for a traditional service or a less formal celebration of life.

We’ll ask how we can pair you with the right celebrant, minister, or officiant. Should they be uplifting in how they lead, or do you need someone who’ll be calming and reserved?

Sometimes you’ll know exactly what you want, and other times you’ll welcome some suggestions and by asking questions we’ll get to learn about the life, the loves and the story of the person who’s died and how you want them to be remembered.

There’s no right or wrong way to approach a funeral, and with many people opting for a less traditional, non-religious service, we can help with suggestions to make the service a creative life celebration, as well as understanding exactly what’s needed for any funeral that’s tied closely to a faith that includes important rituals leading up to, as well as on the day of the service.

Once you’ve registered the death and receive the ‘green form’ that allows for a burial or a cremation, you can start to plan a funeral. Call us if you need any help or if you’ve been told that the coroner is involved and don’t know when you’ll be allowed to plan the funeral, as we’re familiar with these situations.

We’ll help you with the paperwork and all the details that make a funeral happen, from the type of coffin to the colour of the flowers, the number of limousines you’ll need and any special route you’d like us to take on the day. The questions will come up naturally during the arrangement conversation and our job is to make it as easy and stress-free for you as we can. If you want to be involved in all of the details, or if you’d prefer us to take the lead, we’ll do things in a way that’s right for you and for them.

We do all the practical things you’d expect, such as collecting your person from their current location and taking them into our care. You can choose the funeral home that you’d like them to stay in during the lead up to the funeral and we’ll look after them with care and respect. We’ll invite you to visit them at the funeral home and will make the appointments that work for you, their relatives and their friends who’d like to pay their respects.

Your funeral director will liaise with the people at the chosen service location, such as a place of worship, a crematorium, a burial site, as well as the florist, the celebrant or an officiant and will agree the date of the funeral with you and everyone else who’s playing a role in the funeral. If there’s any third parties that we need to pay, we’ll look after that for you so that you only have the funeral home to liaise with for settling payments. You’ll receive an itemised list of everything we’ve included and what it costs and we’ll also help you work with any budget that you have in mind.

If there’s newspaper announcements to be made, we can do that for you, as well as help with an online obituary. Your funeral director will, when you’re ready, also have many suggestions for memorial tributes and ways to remember the person who’s died that embrace tradition as well as more modern and creative options.

It’s the funeral director’s job to make you feel supported and to help you plan the funeral that’s right for you and for them. We’ll be by your side from that first difficult phone call, to making the arrangements with you, on the day of the service itself and at any point in the future.

We have coffee mornings, bereavement support groups and free online GriefChat counsellors to help you through your loss. We know that coping with death doesn’t end with the funeral service, so we pledge to be here for you whenever you need us, before, during and after a funeral.