FUNERAL SERVICES

The days of a traditional Victorian service being the only way to celebrate a life are far behind us. You can now do almost anything you want. Funerals are not just for the deceased, perhaps more importantly, they are also for the people left behind with whom they had a relationship. They can be described as a ceremony where we celebrate the life they led as well as acknowledging they have died. Every faith or culture has a ceremonial aspect in dealing with death. The need for this is real. A funeral ceremony or service of thanksgiving brings people together so they can share and support each other through the grieving process. Remembering the times shared, acknowledging, recognising and celebrating the influence and contribution the person has made as an individual, and as a group, will ultimately help with recovery from the loss.

The majority of funeral services in the UK are held at a crematorium. They are designed for the purpose with most having modern facilities with music, multimedia equipment and video screens to help personalise the ceremony. You can have any particular style of funeral you see fit, whatever suits the family best. This may be a religious service or one led by a trained celebrant, or even a member of the family. The only real restriction being time. Most services are around 30-35 minutes long with funerals every hour. A double time period can be booked if required.

Many funeral services still take place in Church. If the person who has died attended a particular Church it seems natural and fitting that the funeral ceremony should be held there too. Churches are a community focus point and have been venues for funerals for generations. Most churches have an organ and some are installing, or have installed, multimedia facilities too. We are experienced in handling services in all our local churches, bringing in music equipment if required and always assisting with singing the hymns! Traditionally a Church service is followed by a journey to the nearest crematorium or a burial in the churchyard or nearest cemetery. However, more and more families are requesting a private cremation or burial followed by a service in the Church later in the day.

Services can be held at the graveside, out in the open air, and are more suitable for smaller gatherings as it is difficult to speak to large numbers of mourners outside. Woodland Burial grounds can be natural, peaceful places for those that don’t like the formality and the layout of a traditional cemetery or Churchyard. Our advice would be to visit and see how they feel for you. Services can be conducted by a member of the clergy or by a trained celebrant. The disadvantage of a graveside service is the weather; it’s the one thing we can’t control, although we do have a few umbrellas!

An unattended cremation is not a funeral. There is no service, no minister or celebrant; it is direct to the crematorium with no ceremony. There are a number of national, low-cost providers of this service, some of which operate on an industrial scale. This is a service we offer as a family-owned and run Funeral Directors in Market Harborough since 1946. You can rest assured your loved one will be cared for as if they were a member of our own family. We will welcome you to our premises for a face-to-face meeting to complete all necessary arrangements and offer additional services, such as viewings in our chapel of rest. We will tell you which day the cremation will take place, so you can take time out to remember and reflect on your loved one and their life. We also use a local crematorium, and will collect their ashes on your behalf and keep them safely until you are ready.

A Service of Thanksgiving, or celebration of life, can be an alternative to the traditional funeral model of a service with the coffin followed by a committal. The often difficult ‘saying goodbye’ can be done in private, with those closest to you, before a celebration involving the wider community. This format allows the whole congregation to stay together with the celebration and remembering continuing in the informal setting of a reception venue. Also, services of thanksgiving don’t have to happen in Churches; they can take place at a large reception venue that can both cater for and accommodate larger numbers of people. Our experienced team can help organise and manage the venue and the day as required.