When someone dies
It can be difficult to know where to start. This simple guide is here to help you navigate the practical steps that may arise immediately.
Whether you’re dealing with a sudden loss or a long-anticipated one, it can be helpful to understand what you should, could or have to do. There may be opportunities to make space for yourself, to be supported by authorities and organisations, and to deal with the practicalities in a calm, pragmatic way.
From the 9th September 2024 in England and Wales, a new method of death certification has been introduced. Please be aware that some information you find online or elsewhere may be outdated. The following guide is in line with the new practice.
At home
If a person has died at home, we recommend that you take your time as there is no rush to take action. If you feel up to it, you can get in touch with any other family members or friends who might want to come and pay their respects, light candles, listen to some music together.
When you are ready, telephone the person’s surgery so that a medical professional can come and verify the death. In time, the medical examiner or their officers will be in touch with you and will let you know when you can arrange your appointment to register the death.
You can speak to your funeral director at any time for support and to arrange for them to take the person into their care.
At hospital
If a person dies in hospital, an attending practitioner will confirm a cause of death with the medical examiner’s office. In some circumstances the death will be referred to the coroner.
Either the coroner or the medical examiner or their officers will be in touch with you to talk this through and let you know when you can arrange your appointment to register the death. The person who has died will often be kept in the hospital mortuary and you might be able to arrange to visit them there even before you appoint a funeral director.
In hospice or care home
If a person dies in hospice or care home, an attending practitioner will confirm a cause of death with the medical examiner’s office. The medical examiner or their officers will be in touch with you to talk this through and let you know when you can arrange your appointment to register the death.
The hospice or care home will likely have recently asked you to nominate your choice of local funeral director and will soon be in touch with them to arrange for your person to be taken into their care.
Unexpectedly
If the death is unexpected, or the circumstances around the death are unexplained, the death is reported to a coroner. A coroner is a doctor or lawyer responsible for investigating unexpected deaths. They may call for a post-mortem or inquest, which could cause a slight delay to the funeral.
The coroner’s office will let you know when the person’s body is released for funeral arrangements, and if and when you need to make an appointment to register the death.
Abroad
If someone dies abroad, you will need to register the death according to the regulations of the country and get a consulate death certificate.
Register it with the British Consul in the country too, so a record can be kept in the UK. The GOV.UK website explains the practical support British consular staff can offer and what you need to do.
Next steps
Speak to your medical examiner
Deaths in England and Wales are now scrutinised either by a coroner (for unexpected and unexplained deaths) or by a medical examiner (for all other deaths) before they are registered.
A medical examiner is a newly created role, fulfilled by senior doctors and their staff, operating from regional NHS offices around the country.
Bereaved families will be able to speak with a medical examiner or their officers and express any concerns they may have about the death.
The coroner or the medical examiner (or their officers) will let you know when you are able to make an appointment to register the death.
Then we can arrange your meeting with us, where we can guide you through the necessary forms, and we will be able to arrange to bring your person into our care.
While everyone settles into the new system, you can trust that we’re here to support you through and to do all we can to ensure your experience is as smooth as possible.
Contact details for medical examiner offices for England and Wales can be found here.
For deaths in Brighton contact uhsussex.medicalexaminerbh@nhs.net or telephone 01273 523162.
Register the death
Once your medical examiner or the coroner have informed the registry office of the recorded cause of death you will need to book an appointment with a registrar to deliver the certificate, usually within 5 days. This process can be sped along by asking the registrar if they have any cancellations.
Arrange care of the body
It is worth considering that, especially when the death is expected, the best moments to spend time with your person might be just after they die. Allowing time and space at critical times can help those involved to begin to process what has happened.
We have a calm space very close to Preston Park train station with excellent mortuary facilities, an at-rest room for visits, and a space for small gatherings. We can facilitate ritualised washing of the body here and employ gentle, natural body care techniques ourselves. We even have some studio space for creative tasks such as painting or decorating the coffin.
When you are ready to have the body of the person who has died moved from the place where they have died, we can collect them and bring them into our care to stay with us.
We can also offer support and advice if your wish is to keep their body at home ahead of the funeral and care for them yourself.
Think about arranging a funeral
A funeral is about bringing people together to confront the sadness of what has happened, with a joining of forces to enable moving forward collectively. Alternative funerals facilitate everyone affected by a death to be a part of the final chapter of the life.
In the immediate event of a person’s death, it can be helpful to give some consideration to funeral arrangements, but there’s no need to be too concerned with details right away. A funeral arranger can guide you through the options and processes.
To begin with, simply reflect upon the sort of event which would best represent the person.
Think about funerals you’ve been to: What worked? What didn’t? Could there be an element of participation or creativity? How did your person live? How can this be reflected and discovered in the way we say goodbye?
