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Short notice burial policy Arrangements for same-day or short notice burials

Arranging a burial (during working day)

  1. The Bereavement Office must be contacted by telephone to arrange the time and location of a burial using this service. The service will not accept initial bookings by text, teams’ message or email.
  2. Burials can be booked for arrival at the cemetery between 09.30 a.m. and 3.00 p.m., except during December and January when the latest burial at any cemetery is 2.45 p.m.
  3. A minimum notice period of 3 hours is required for a same-day burial service between the booking and the time of interment.
  4. One hour is required between burial services to ease traffic flow and visitor numbers to a site.
  5. There is a daily weekday maximum of 3 full coffin internments at each cemetery for standard timescale and short notice bookings.
  6. The service does not confirm bookings until the death has been registered at a Register Office, the Registrar has issued the Certificate for Burial (Green Form) and the document received by Bereavement Services.
  7. The family must contact and liaise with the local Register Office in the district of the death directly to arrange the appointment for registration.
  8. The burial order must be completed, signed and electronically returned to the Bereavement Office at least 2 hours before the interment. The fees must also be paid in full by this time unless the Funeral Director has a credit account with the service. Any delay to paperwork or payment may cause a service to be postponed to the following day.
  9. Where a Funeral Director is not engaged, the person arranging the funeral will be asked to complete and sign the burial order to verify the correct size of the grave required. Failure to complete the burial application form in full or provide an accurate coffin size may delay the interment.

Arranging a burial (weekends and bank holidays)

  1.  Contact must be made with the Standby Officer within the agreed times of service cover using the published mobile number. Outside of these times, the phone is turned off, and messages are not responded to. Under no circumstances should any staff member be contacted personally to arrange a burial.
  2. Weekend burials can also be arranged during the week with Bereavement Services using the main office contact number, though weekend fees will apply.
  3. The Standby Officer will confirm with the on-call Registrar that the MCCD has been received from the Medical Examiner and that a registration appointment can proceed for Walsall District deaths only. A time for the appointment at the Walsall Register Office will be arranged with the Bereavement Officer, and:
  4. The MCCD from the Medical Examiner must be received electronically by the Registrar by the end of the standby period. Any documents received after this time will be processed the following day.
  5. Attendance at the Register Office is for the informant and a maximum of 2 family members only.
  6. The Register Office is closed to the public at weekends/bank holidays and may not be open until the agreed appointment time.
  7. After registration, the Registrar will issue the Burial Certificate (Green Form) to the Standby Officer. The family may also purchase Death Certificates at this time. (Fees paid to Registrar).
  8. On no account will the Registrar issue the Burial Certificate without the death being registered.
  9. Bookings are not confirmed by Bereavement Services until the death has been registered at a Register Office and the Certificate for Burial (Green Form) has been issued by the Registrar. Full payment for the burial must be made when confirming the burial. Cash / cheque payments are not accepted.
  10. For a same day service, a minimum notice period of 3 hours is required between the booking and the time of interment.
  11. The burial order must be completed, signed and electronically returned to the Bereavement Office at least 2 hours before the time of interment. The fees must also be paid in full at this time unless the Funeral Director has a credit account with the service. Any delay to paperwork may cause a service to be postponed to the following day.
  12. Where a Funeral Director is not engaged, the person arranging the funeral will be asked to complete and sign the burial order to verify the correct size of the grave required – this is normally via email. Failure to provide an accurate coffin size may delay the interment.
  13. Once a time has been confirmed and the burial order completed, any further changes are not permitted. Families wishing to change any aspect of the burial must be aware that making such a change could lead to the postponement of the funeral to the following day.
  14. Normal cemetery rules as published in the Bereavement Services Cemetery Rules and Regulations apply to all burials, standard and shorth notice burials.