After a person has died, you will need to contact their Doctor or the out of hours duty Doctor. If the death was in a nursing home the staff at the home will arrange for this to be done. Once the Doctor has confirmed that death has taken place and given permission for the deceased to be moved, you may ring your chosen Funeral Director.
We will ask you for the deceased's full name, place of death and for the next of kin's or Executor's contact details. Once this information has been given we will arrange for our staff to move the deceased to our Chapel of Rest. We offer a 24 hour service, 365 days of the year so can be called at any time day or night. If you have called the duty doctor out, you will need to speak to the deceased's own Doctor the next working day to find out when the medical cause of death certificate will be available for you to collect.
If a Person Dies at Home or in a Nursing Home
After a person has died, you will need to contact their Doctor or the out of hours duty Doctor. If the death was in a nursing home the staff at the home will arrange for this to be done. Once the Doctor has confirmed that death has taken place and given permission for the deceased to be moved, you may ring your chosen Funeral Director. We will ask you for the deceased's full name, place of death and for the next of kin's or Executor's contact details. Once this information has been given we will arrange for our staff to move the deceased to our Chapel of Rest. We offer a 24 hour service, 365 days of the year so can be called at any time day or night. If you have called the duty doctor out, you will need to speak to the deceased's own Doctor the next working day to find out when the medical cause of death certificate will be available for you to collect.
If a Person Dies in Hospital
If a person dies in hospital then the hospital Doctor will confirm death. You will need to speak to the Bereavement Office or Patient Affairs at the hospital to find out when the medical cause of death certificate will be available. You may contact the Funeral Director before you have been to collect the certificate if you wish.
H M Coroner
If the death was sudden, unexpected or the Doctor is unable to issue a medical cause of death certificate then it will be reported to the Coroner. The Coroner's Officer will contact the family and keep them informed of what is happening. They will decide whether there will need to be a post mortem examination. They will also advise you as to when you will be able to register the death and will send the paperwork direct to the Registrar's Office for you to collect the Copy of the Entry. If the Coroner decides that an inquest is necessary, they will usually be able to issue the forms required for the funeral to go ahead by opening the inquest for the purpose of the identification of the deceased and then adjourn it until further investigations have taken place.