We are a family owned, independent funeral directors and have been serving the local communities of Herne Bay, Whitstable, Beltinge, and Canterbury since 1948. It has been an honour to help, support and comfort many Kent families over the last 77 years.
Arranging a funeral can be an emotionally challenging experience and certain decisions will need to be made at a time when you’re least able to do so.
When someone dies it is very common to get in touch with a Funeral Director.
If the person has died in the community or in a nursing home, we will use our Private Ambulance to bring the deceased into our Private Mortuary as soon as possible.
For Hospital/Hospice deaths there are a few extra steps. We will need you to sign a Release Form to authorise the transfer of the deceased back to our Private Mortuary once the Hospital/Hospice is ready to release the body. In either instance, a Medical Certificate of Cause of Death (MCCD) will be issued by a GP or Hospital/Hospice Doctor normally within a few days of the passing. You will need this to register the death.
If it was an unexpected death, the Coroner may be required, and you may not be required to register the passing before the funeral takes place.
Once the Medical Certificate of Cause of Death (MCCD) has been issued, you will be able to register. This is done in local libraries, and booked by calling the Registrar on 03000 415151 or booking online.
Once you’ve got an appointment to register the death, give us another call and we’ll arrange to meet with you to go through all of the necessary funeral arrangements.
When registering the death, you will be asked for the following information about the deceased:
The date and place of birth and death, full name, usual address and occupation
Details of any pension or allowance from public funds
The date and place of birth of any surviving spouse
The full name, usual address and qualification of the informant
A Death Certificate can then be obtained on payment of the prescribed fee. This will be needed for obtaining probate or letters of administration, closing bank accounts, and making claims on insurance policies.
The Registrar will also issue what we call a “Green Form” which is the Registrar’s Certificate for Burial or Cremation, which will be required by the Funeral Director. They can also provide you with forms for the “Tell Us Once” service which informs central and local government services of the death all at one time, replacing the old BD8 Form.
