After a loved one dies, the first step is to make contact with a local Funeral Director. If you are hoping to ask a priest to officiate (at Church, Crematorium, or Graveside), the Funeral Director will contact a local church to check whether a priest has availability on the day you hope to hold the funeral.
When you meet with the Funeral Director, they will ask about various details, including what sort of funeral has been requested by the person who has died. You don’t have to be religious or a churchgoer to have a funeral in Church; it is open to all.
A Church funeral is available for everybody within their own parish, and the Funeral Directors will talk to you about where the funeral might be held. Sometimes people choose to have a funeral in Church, sometimes at the Crematorium, and other times by the side of the grave. We offer open and closed coffin ceremonies.
The message at all Church of England funerals, wherever they happen, is one of hope. Although there is sadness because someone has died, at all of our funerals there will also be a message of hope in life after death, and an invitation to mourners to seek God in the face of grief.
A church funeral allows you to give thanks for the unique person you knew and loved. We will help you to plan the funeral before it takes place, and offer you help if you’re not sure what to include. A church funeral can include special details; what people wear, favourite music, tributes, readings and photographs.
Wherever the funeral takes place, whatever your link to the person who has died, there will be somebody available at St Augustine’s Church to offer ongoing support. We invite all of the families of people who’ve died in the past few years to attend our annual All Souls service.
If you’d like to speak with a priest about planning the details of your funeral or that of a loved one before you die, do contact the church office.
