At JB Shakespeare Ltd we have been arranging funerals since 1877.
A funeral can be conducted in many ways - it can be in church, at a crematorium chapel or even at home - the decision is yours.
When you first make contact with us we will ask for some details.
The full name of the deceased, their address, date of birth and date of death, your relationship to the deceased, where they have died and their religion (if any).
You may already have thoughts on the sort of ceremony that you have in mind and if that is the case we can make provisional arrangements at this stage - whether you wish for a burial or cremation.
Often the first concern is the care of the deceased and if the death has occurred at home we will make arrangements for collecting them once the doctor has been. They will be taken to our chapel of rest in Sheldon Street, Croydon.
If you haven’t been told already, we will explain the procedure for registering the death.
There is a considerable amount of paperwork to be done and we will prepare this for you and arrange to meet up with you.
At this stage we will discuss the other details of the arrangements but you need to bear in mind the following points:
| • | How the deceased will be dressed ( we provide a gown set, if required). |
| • | Whether you wish to visit the deceased in our Chapel of Rest. |
| • | Flowers and/or donations in memory of the deceased. |
| • | Music for the service. |
| • | Whether jewellery is to stay with the deceased or be returned to the family. |
| • | Travel arrangements - where the funeral will start and finish. |
If you or members of the family are intending to visit our Chapel of Rest it would help greatly if you could provide a recent photo of the deceased - this will be returned to you.
When you visit us to complete the arrangements we will provide you with a full estimate of the costs.
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We offer a wide range of coffins many of which are made in our workshops. There is a vast range in prices and the costs are available on application.
If you wish other coffins can be supplied including wicker and cardboard. All coffins are made from wood from a sustainable source.
In the case of cremation, the ashes are placed in a temporary plastic container that is free of charge. If, however, you are having an interment at a later stage you may wish for one of our wooden urns. Alternatively we have a range of more ornate containers that can be ordered in. These can be viewed at our head office.
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At JB Shakespeare we operate a fleet of Daimler
limousines and have a Daimler hearse. We believe this marquee underpins our traditional and dignified approach and reinforces the understated quality values
to which we aspire.
The limousines seat six people.
If you wish, however, we can make alternative arrangements to suit your needs. Requests have included:
| • | Horse Drawn Hearse |
| • | Flat-bed lorry |
| • | Motorcycle with sidecar hearse |
| • | A Van |
We will do all we can to provide what you require.
Because each and every funeral is unique the costs are made up of many component parts - some of the costs - called disbursements - are not within our control. The cost of the disbursements are the same whichever funeral director you choose to use.
Added to the fee are the disbursements. These are the costs that we pay on your behalf to outside agencies:
| • | The fee for the vicar, priest or officiant. |
| • | The fee for use of the crematorium or churchyard |
| • | The fee for the doctors - in the case of cremation. |
Our fees include the costs of staffing, arranging and processing the paperwork involved in arranging the funeral.
The rest of the charges are made up of the cost of the collection of the deceased from the place of death, coffin cost, hearse cost and limousine costs.
There are other possible extras - church and verger fees, organist fees, the cost of newspaper announcements, service sheets etc.
We always explain the costs to you when we arrange a funeral and we always provide this information for you in written form.
Local Crematorium costs in 2007 (subject to alteration)
| Croydon (includes organist) | £498 |
| Beckenham (includes organist) | £450 |
| Surrey and Sussex (includes organist) | £450 |
| Randalls Park (includes organist) | £450 |
| South London (includes organist) | £425 |
| North East Surrey (No organist) | £350 |
| West Norwood (No organist) | £195 |
We provide a simple funeral that costs under £1,000. No less dignified than any other funeral, we offer you the same services as we would for any other client
We will collect the deceased from the place of death (subject to mileage supplement), we will help you with the paperwork, we will provide a coffin and staff on the day of the funeral.
The costs, however, are kept down by certain adjustments. There is no viewing of the deceased and the hearse travels direct to the place of the funeral. There are no limousines.
Added to the fee are the disbursements. These are the costs that we pay on your behalf to outside agencies:
| • | The fee for the vicar, priest or officiate. |
| • | The fee for use of the crematorium or churchyard. |
| • | The fee for the doctors - in the case of cremation. |
As cemeteries and churchyards reach capacity and concerns about the environment come to the fore, so the need for alternative ways of holding funeral services become more pressing.
Today people are more alert to their environmental responsibilities and more sensitive to what they may regard as the processing system of life where one-size increasingly fits all. As a consequence woodland burials are becoming more popular. In 1993 there was just one woodland burial ground - today there are more than 100.
In part the funeral of Princess Diana made people more aware. Her burial on an island at the family estate was, at the time, highly unusual.
Not only does the woodland burial allow for a more environmentally friendly means of holding the funeral service, it allows for greater scope in terms of the ceremony whether religious or non-religious.
At JB Shakespeare we believe that you have the right to hold the funeral service that you want. To this end we offer an inclusive woodland burial service. The sites are at Oakfield Wood in Guildford, at the Brighton & Hove Woodland Burial Ground and Bear Road Cemetery and at Otford near Sevenoaks. For your convenience we offer the following:
Woodland burial
| • | The services of a funeral director, the necessary administration and a full complement of staff. |
| • | The removal of the deceased from the place of death (20 running miles allowed) to our Chapel of Rest. |
| • | Care of the deceased. |
| • | Full viewing facilities at the Chapel of Rest. |
| • | A solid pine coffin with fittings, three pairs of wooden handles, inscribed name plate and taffeta interior. |
| • | A hearse and one limousine (seating up to six people). |
Disbursements are to be added - this means the burial ground fees, minister’s fee and or chapel fees, if applicable. The pine coffin can be substituted with another eco-friendly casket.
We make an in memoriam donation to the Woodland Trust.
Funerals are expensive and because of the many varying elements that go into them, the final cost seems to be constantly rising.
One way of controlling this is by taking out a funeral plan.
In effect you pay for the funeral at today’s price and we provide the service when it is required in the future.
These are the main advantages of such planning:
| • | Prepaid funerals cap costs |
| • | No legacy of debt fear for surviving dependents |
| • | You can make detailed requests for your funeral - as you would like it. |
The plans are underwritten and transferable. If you move to another part of the country, or we cease to operate, the policy is protected.
At JB Shakespeare we operate two schemes that offer various options on the type of funeral you choose. The providers are:
| • | The Open Pre-Paid Funeral Plan |
| • | The Perfect Assurance Funeral Trust. |
For more details please telephone or email. We can provide a brochure or alternatively, we are happy to meet with you and discuss your wishes.
We have offices at:
67 George Street Croydon, Surrey CR0 1LD
21-27 Sheldon Street. Croydon, CR0 1SS - Chapel of Rest and Monumental Masons
84 Godstone Road, Kenley, CR8 5AA, tel: 020 8668 8565
175 Selsdon Park Road, Croydon, Surrey CR2 8JJ, tel: 020 8657 3616
We operate a 24-hour service and can be contacted on:
020 8688 1447 and 020 8688 2003
If you wish to contact us by email please use the following address:
enquiries@jbshakespearefunerals.co.uk
Our Fax Number is:
020 8688 5330
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