The Big Future of Funerals Survey Report

REJECTING THE ONE-SIZE-FITS-ALL APPROACH
The reliance on funeral professionals’ guidance coupled with 78% of UK families choosing cremation results in an
almost uniform format and execution. It can be impersonal and some have described this as an ‘insert deceased’s
name here’ approach. One strong theme of the informal feedback volunteered to staff at Pure Cremation is that this
familiar formula can’t truly reflect the personality of the deceased, and so this was explored in the survey.
Interestingly, the BFFS respondents fell into two clear and opposite camps when considering the style of farewell
that they would want and who should organise this:
Group 1
I don’t place any importance on a personalised sendoff
and it doesn’t matter who is in charge
of things
Group 2
It is very important that friends and family
are in charge of a farewell and that it is
personalised
A further 13.89% of people said they chose a Pure Cremation because there won’t be anyone left to attend
a traditional funeral and with the number of people 85 and above increasing – currently representing over
2% of the population and projected to double by 2040 – this is a situation which is only going to increase
(Source ONS data).
SEEKING A HAPPY PLACE
When it comes to expressing their life or personality after death, the survey results clearly show that places of
personal significance were the primary consideration. More than a quarter said that the farewell location mattered to
them and more than a third declared the final disposition location was important.
The top 3 farewell locations chosen by respondents were ones with personal connections:
Beach
14%
Home
15%
Garden
14%
This is echoed by the stories
shared by Pure Cremation clients
who hold farewell events in
locations as diverse as beauty
spots, beloved local pubs,
woodlands and even a zoo!
…ABOUT GOOD GRIEF JOURNEYS
Most families are ill-informed about funeral matters
and naturally turn to the professionals for guidance. The
advice they receive is drawn from the professionals’
personal opinion, experience and cultural practice rather
than an open exploration of what matters most to the
client and the full range of options available.
One key example is the widely broadcast view that
seeing the deceased after death and/or having the
coffin present at the farewell are essential to a ‘good
grief journey’.
This is contradicted by 35% of survey respondents
reporting that seeing the coffin is ‘too traumatic’ and by
the long-term decline in the number of funeral home
chapel visits.
This survey raises an important question-
How many families have had an
unsatisfactory experience because they’ve
followed funeral traditions that have no
meaning for them?
THE BIG FUTURE OF FUNERALS SURVEY
5