What is a direct cremation?
What is a direct cremation?
Direct cremations are also referred to as 'unattended funerals' or 'unattended cremations'. They are the simplest way of carrying out a cremation: an affordable alternative to a full traditional service, for those wanting an uncomplicated goodbye still with excellent standards of care.
Why do people choose Direct Cremations?
Direct cremations are simple, no fuss and affordable.
There are many reasons why you might choose a direct cremation instead of a traditional funeral, but the most common are cost and choice:
Cost – because the cremation is unattended, with no pre-funeral ceremony or service, it is cheaper than a traditional funeral
Choice – hold a farewell ceremony or event wherever you wish, at a time convenient for you, your family and friends
Choosing a no-fuss cremation, and then perhaps holding a ceremony or memorial at a special location, has grown in popularity in recent times. Celebrities David Bowie and Karl Lagerfeld both opted to have a direct cremation too!
How does a Direct Cremation work?
The person who has died will be transported to the crematorium after death and transferred into the care of the crematorium.
The cremation will be completed within 72 hours, following the Institute of Cemetery and Crematorium Management Guidelines (ICCM) Guiding Principles for Cremation.
The cremation takes place in a simple coffin and is carried out individually.
Once complete, the ashes will be ready within 48 hours and can then either be transported to your chosen address in a scatter tube or be scattered in the crematorium’s garden of remembrance.
What can I do with the ashes after?
If you’ve chosen to have the ashes returned to you, you have the choice of what you do with them.
Many people choose to scatter ashes in a place meaningful to the person who has died. From parks to back gardens, many open places allow the scattering of ashes, you just need to get permission from the owner of the land. For rivers and waterways, you don’t need permission, but we advise you to check with your local environmental agency for any specific guidance.
You may want to keep the ashes close to you at home. Urns or statues are common ways of keeping ashes and can be purchased in a variety of materials and styles from third parties.
If you want to make a keepsake, such as an item of jewellery, out of the ashes, we can recommend a funeral director close to you that would be able to advise you.
How long does a Direct Cremation take?
The person who has died will be transported to the crematorium after death and transferred into the care of the crematorium.
The cremation will be completed within 72 hours, following the Institute of Cemetary and Crematorium Management Guidelines (ICCM) Guiding Principles for Cremation.
The cremation takes place in a simple coffin and is carried out individually.
Once complete, the ashes will be ready within 48 hours and can then either be transported to your chosen address in a scatter tube or be scattered in the crematorium’s garden of remembrance.
Can I attend the cremation/funeral?
Unfortunately not. A Direct Cremation is unattended. If you would prefer an attended service, then please contact us and we can help put you in touch a trusted funeral director at CPJ Field.
How do I arrange a Direct Cremation?
A Direct Cremation can be arranged remotely, without the need to visit a funeral director.
A Direct Cremation can be arranged remotely, without the need to visit a funeral director. Once the death has been verified by a medical professional, you can then contact us to start procedures. See more information on ‘What to do when somebody dies’ here.
To arrange the Direct Cremation, we will need the contact information for you and the person who has died, so it is useful to have this information to hand
Call us on 0800 0086867 or use our online form which will capture all the necessary information.
We will require the full cost of our Direct Cremation to be paid in advance. This can be done with us over the phone or via our online form.
Sometimes, we may need further paperwork. If so, we will arrange to have this sent to you to complete and return to us. When we have all the completed paperwork, we will then start to make arrangements to transport the person who has died into our care.
The crematorium will inform us once the cremation is complete and when we can collect the ashes. The ashes are usually ready 48 hours after the cremation and we can then contact you to arrange a date for the ashes and paperwork to be returned to you. If you chose not to have the ashes returned to you then we will arrange a scattering in the crematorium’s garden of remembrance. The paperwork will be posted back to you if you chose to have the ashes scattered.