2026年殡葬成本调查报告：殡葬费用与社会观念的变迁

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CostofDyingReport2026

Acomprehensiveviewoffuneralcostsandattitudestofuneralsovertime

SunLifeCostofDyingReport2026

Howtonavigatethroughthisreport

Usethearrowstomoveforwardsorbackwards–orclickonthechaptertitletojumptothatsection.

2

-contents

1

Introductionfrom

MarkScreeton,CEOSunLife

-

3

emotionallyandfinancially.

SunLifeCostofDyingReport2026

WelcometotheSunLifeCostofDyingReport2026

WiththepriceoffuneraIscontinuingtorise,manypeopIethesedaysareseekingcheaperaIternatives

orcost–cuttingmeasures.

ConsumersaredemandingawiderrangeoffuneraIs-andsothisCostofDyingReporthighIightsmore

optionsthaneverbefore.

FamiIiesareprioritisingpersonaI

touchesoverformaIity-optingforsmaIIer,moremeaningfuIservices.Theseprovideanimportant

opportunitytoceIebrateaIovedone’sIifewithoutoverspending.

We’reaIsoseeingmorepeopIeturningtosimpIeattended

funeraIs-amodernmiddIe

groundbetweentraditionaIattendedanddirectoptions.

CruciaIIy,havingconversations

aboutwhatwewantforourfuneraIsandhowtheywiIIbepaidforcan

makearealdifference–both

PIanningaheadaIIowsfamiIies

tocreateameaningfuIfareweII

withoutunnecessarystressorcost,atwhat’salreadyadifficulttime.

Thefindingscomeafter22years

ofSunLife’sresearchintofuneraI

pricesandtrends.Ourindustry–

IeadingCostofDyingReport

expIoreshowpeopIearecoveringmountingfuneraIcosts,changingattitudestowardsfinalfarewells,

andtheevoIvingIandscapefacingtheindustry.

OntopofourusuaIquestions,

funeraIdirectorsthisyearreveaI

theirthoughtsonwhycostsareontheincrease,thegrowingtrendofwoodIandburiaIs,andthecontinuedriseofdirectcremations.

AsaIways,bothfuneraIdirectors

andthosewho’verecentIy

organisedasend-offhavegivenuspIentyoftipsandadviceonwhat

(andwhatnot)todo.Sowhether

you’repIanningaIovedone’sfuneraIorthinkingaheadtoyourown,wehopeourreportcanheIpmake

thingsjustthatIittIebiteasier.

AIIthisandmorecanbefound

throughoutthepagesofourCostofDyingReport–Ihopeyoufindthis2026editionuseful.

MarkScreetonCEO,SunLife

1

Aboutthereport–

TheCostofDyingReportisanannualsector-leadingresearchpaperthat’sbeenrunningfor

22years,providingacredibleandcomprehensiveoverviewoffuneralcosts.

4

It’sundertakenbyCriticalResearchonbehalfofSunLife,usingtworesearchmethods:

Thereportlooksat:

Interviewswith100funeraldirectorsacrosstheUK(10perregion),

conductedinMaytoJuly2025.

Interviewswith1,500individuals

whohavebeeninvolvedin

organisingafuneraloverthepastfouryears,conductedinJuneto

July2025.36%organisedafuneralwithinthepast12months.

Thisyear,additionalqualitative

researchwasundertaken:aface-

to-facediscussiongroupwith

eightfuneralorganisers,andin-

depthtelephoneinterviewswithsixdecision-makingfuneraldirectors.

We’dalsoliketothankTheNationalSocietyofAlliedandIndependentFuneralDirectors(SAIF)and

LindesayMace(co-managerof

DowntoEarth)fortheirfeedbackandinputintothisyear’sreport.

Funeralpricetrends–Forarangeofattendedandunattended

burialsandcremations.

Additionaldiscretionarycosts–Includingsend-offcostsand

professionalfees.

Challengesfacingtheindustry–

Suchastheriseofdirectcremations.

Financingafuneral–Howpeoplearepreparing,paying,and

cuttingcosts.

Trendsandtraditions–

Howfuneralsareevolving.

SunLifeCostofDyingReport2026

1

Aboutthereport

5

HowtoreferencetheCostofDyingReport

Youarewelcometousethese

factsandfigures.PleaseensureyoureferenceSunLifesCost

ofDyingReportandlinkto

www.sunlife.co.uk/funeral-costs

Ourmethodology

Ourfuneralcostsarecalculated

asaweightedaverageofburialsandcremationsintheUK(in2025,26%versus74%).Thischange

ofmethodologywasintroducedin2020,andpreviousyears,

figureswereupdatedtogiveaconsistentcomparison.

Thisyear,wevemeasuredan

additionaltypeoffuneral:asimpleattendedfuneral.Thisrepresentsamorecommon,modernsend-

off一onethatremovesseveral

extraelementsfromthetraditionalattendedfuneralthatwevebeentrackingsince2004.

Imagecourtesyof:

www.goodfuneralguide.co.uk/gallery

SunLifeCostofDyingReport2026

1

Thereportataglance

–

Thecostofasimpleattendedfuneralplusasend-offcosts£5,140in2025.

6

Totalfuneralspend

Costofasimpleattendedfuneral

£3,828

(Newforthisreport)

+Averagespendonasend–off

£1,312

+5.3%increaseon2024

=Total

£5,140

Costofasimpleattendedfuneral+Averagespendonasend-off

(Newforthisreport)

Otherfuneraloptions

Costofatraditionalattendedfuneral

£4,510

+5.3%increaseon2024

Costofadirectcremation

£1,628

+1.9%increaseon2024

SunLifeCostofDyingReport2026

1

Thereportataglance

–

7

Fivekeyfactsfromthe

2026CostofDyingReport

58%

ofpeopledon’tputenoughasidetocoverthewhole

costoftheirfuneral

146%21%

riseinthecostofatraditionalattendedfuneralsinceour

firstreport22yearsago

offuneralsaredescribedasadirectcremation

15%

offamiliesexperience

notablefinancialconcernswhenpayingforafuneral

18%

offuneralorganisersdon’tknowanyoftheirlovedone’swishes

SunLifeCostofDyingReport2026

2

Funeralcosts

SunLifeCostofDyingReport2026

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2

Thechangingland-scapeoffunerals

–

SunLifelaunchedthefirstAverageFuneralPricingreportin2004.

Inthe22yearssincethen,funeralshavechangedsignificantly.

BurialsCremations

Peoplehavebeenchoosingto

moveawayfromtraditionalsend-

offsandtowardsthemorebespoke.Thepandemicacceleratedthisshift,andthemarketnowprovidesoptionstosuitallbudgetsandpreferences.

Assuch,thisCostofDyingReportintroducesnewfigurestohighlighttherangeoffuneralcostsavailabletoconsumers.

Wenowlookatburialsand

cremationsacrossthreetypes:

simpleattended,traditional

attended,anddirect.Attended

funeralsarethosewithaserviceandmournerspresent,whereasdirectfuneralsareunattended.

Eachofthesevarietiesisexploredacrossthenextfewpages.

Simpleattendedburial

£4,758

(Newforthisreport)

Traditionalattendedburial

£5,440

+4.7%increaseon2024

Directburial*

£1,628

Simpleattendedcremation

£3,518

(Newforthisreport)

Traditionalattendedcremation

£4,200

+5.5%increaseon2024

Directcremation

£1,628

+6.6%increaseon2024+1.9%increaseon2024

*Directburialcostdoesn’tincludethird-partyfees.

SunLifeCostofDyingReport2026

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2

Simpleattended

funerals–

Asimpleattendedfuneralisone

thatincludesallcommonlychosenelements.Accordingtofuneral

directors,it’sthemostpopulartypethesedays–representingamodernservice.

Whatdoesthecostofasimpleattendedfuneralinclude?

Collectionofthedeceased

Allcareofthedeceased,robe,anddressing

Pre-payingdisbursementsandattendingtodocumentation

Provisionofahearse

Awood-effectcoffin

Feesfortheburialorcremationatthecemeteryorcrematorium

Notethatdoctor’sfeesarenolongerapplicableinEngland,Scotland,orWales(butremainin

NorthernIreland).

Thiscontrastswithatraditional

attendedfuneral,whichincludesanumberofextrasthatareless

commonlychosennowadays(seenextpage).

Thecostofasimpleattendedburialis£4,758,whileasimpleattendedcremationismore

affordableat£3,518.

Takingtheseseparateprices

andbalancingitbytheirrelativepopularity,theaveragecostofasimpleattendedfuneralsits

at£3,828.Allthesefiguresarenewforthisreport.

Whatarethecostsofsimpleattendedfunerals?

Simpleattendedburial

£4,758

Simpleattendedcremation

£3,518

Simpleattendedfuneral

£3,828

(Weightedaverage)

SunLifeCostofDyingReport2026

2

Traditional

attendedfunerals–

Atraditionalattendedfuneral

expandsonasimpleattendedfuneralwithahandfulofextras,suchasalimousineand

amid-rangecoffin.

11

SunLifeCostofDyingReport2026

Thistypeoffuneralwasmore

commonwhenwestartedtrackingitscostin2004.

Buttheseadditionalelements

aren’tchosenasoftentodayas

consumerbehaviourchanges

andorganiserslookforwaysto

savemoney.However,thefigurescontinuetogiveanindicationoffuneralcostinflation.

Asexpected,traditionalattendedfuneralsarepricierthantheirsimplecounterparts.Aburialisthemost

expensivevariety一£5,440

(up4.7%onthepreviousyear)一whileacremationcomesinat

£4,200(up5.5%).

Theirweightedaverageshowsanincreaseof5.3%to£4,510,makingitthehighestyear-on-yearrisesince2016.

Thesefigureshighlightthatanaveragesavingofnearly£700canbemadebychoosing

asimpleattendedfuneraloveratraditionalone.

Imagecourtesyof:

www.goodfuneralguide.co.uk/gallery

12

2

Traditionalattendedfunerals

–

Whatarethecostsoftraditionalattendedfunerals?

2024

2025

Change

Traditional

attendedburial

£5,198

£5,440

+4.7%

Traditionalattended

cremation

£3,980

£4,200

+5.5%

Traditional

attendedfuneral

£4,285

£4,510

+5.3%

(Weightedaverage)

Whatdoesthecostofatraditionalattendedfuneralinclude?

Alltheelementsofasimpleattendedfuneral.

Useofthechapelofrestforviewing

ofthedeceased.

Provisionofalimousinewithattendants(afuneraldirectorandpallbearers).

Amid-rangeoak-veneercoffin

(insteadofawood-effectcoffin).

SunLifeCostofDyingReport2026

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2

Directfunerals–

Directcremationsanddirect

burialsaretheunattended

alternatives–thedeceasedis

takendirectlytothecrematoriumorcemetery,andthere’sno

serviceorguests.

Whatarethecostsofdirectfunerals?

2024

2025

Change

Directcremation

£1,597

£1,628

+1.9%

Directburial*

*Directburialcostdoesn’tincludethird-partyfees.

£1,527

£1,628

+6.6%

Directcremationshavegrowninpopularity

Directcremationshavegrown

significantlyinpopularitysince

thepandemic–andnowmakeup21%ofallfunerals(seepage24).

Liketraditionalattendedfunerals,directfuneralshaveseenprice

increasesacrosstheboard–butstillremainthelowest-pricedoptions.Bothdirectcremationsanddirect

burialsnowcost£1,628一up1.9%and6.6%respectively.

Onthesurface,directcremations

seemsignificantlycheaperthan

otherfuneraltypes.Butitshouldbenotedthat86%oftheseorganisersstillholdamemorialserviceor

celebrationoflifeofsomekind,

meaningtheaverageamountspentonadirectcremationis£2,949.

SunLifeCostofDyingReport2026

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2

Directburials–

Likeadirectcremation,adirect

burialisatypeoffuneralwithout

aservice.Instead,thedeceased

istakenstraighttoacemeteryandburied–makingitlowerpriced

thanaburialwithaservice.

Directburialcosts

77%offuneraldirectorsofferthistypeoffuneral,withacostof

£1,628

+Thecostoftheburialplotitself-whichaverages

£2,374

=Total

£4,002

Factsaboutdirectburials

2%

offuneralorganisersdescribethefuneraltheyarrangedas

adirectburial.

67%

saytheyareawareofthem.

SunLifeCostofDyingReport2026

2

Whyhave

funeralcostsincreased?

–

83%offuneraldirectorsbelievethat,ingeneral,funeralcostshaverisenontheyearbefore.

15

Insightfromfuneraldirectors

Thepriceofatraditionalattendedfuneralhasincreasedby5.3%一

thebiggestyear-on-yearrisesince2016.

Weaskedfuneraldirectorswhy

theythinkthisisandwhatpressuresthey’refacing.Thesearethe

commonthemes:

Third-partyandwholesalecosts,suchascoffinsandtimber

Energycosts

Crematoriafeesandavailability

Burialsitefeesandavailability

Staffcosts,suchastheincreaseinemployerNationalInsurancecontributions

Generalinflationandrisingcostofliving

Coffinmanufacturershavegenerallyputtheirfeesupby4%to7%

yearonyear.Wehadalltheissues

withworldwidelogistics,withthe

containershipsandairfreightcostsgoingup.Sothesemanufacturersthatimportpartstobuildacoffin,

theygothit.

Labourcosts–we’reinquitean

expensivepartoftheworldtolive.

Whenweoccasionallylookfornewstaff,youcan’tfindthequalityof

staffforthewagesyouthinkyoucanpayforsomeone.BecausethecostoflivinginBournemouthisoneof

thehighestintheUK,everything

weeversupply,andeverythingwebuyiscostingmore.

Outsidecosts,staffcosts,NationalInsurance,wagehikes,taxhikes,

businessrates,energycosts.It’salltheadd-onsthataren’tnecessarilypassedtotheconsumerdirectlytobuildupthefuneral.It’salltheextracostsontop–ofbasicallyrunningabusiness.

Imagecourtesyof:

www.goodfuneralguide.co.uk/gallery

SunLifeCostofDyingReport2026

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2

Traditionalattended

funeralcostsovertime–

SunLifehasbeentrackingthecost

ofatraditionalattendedfuneralfor

22years.Thispriceissourceddirectlyfromfuneraldirectors,andincludes

astandardisedlistofservices

(seepage12)toaccuratelyreflectfuneralcostinflationovertime.

2004

2005

2006

2007

Witha5.3%risefromtheyear

before,2025sawthehighest

year-on-yearincreasesince2016.

Andsinceourfirstreportin2004,thecosthasrisen146%.Ifithad

grownatthesamerateasinflation,thisfigurewouldonlybe82%*

Year-on-yearchange

+2.7%

+10.5%

+9.9%

+6.3%

2008

2009

2010

+6.9%

+4.4%

+7.3%

Lookingforward,ourprojectionsuggeststhatthecostof

atraditionalattendedfuneralcouldincreasebyafurther

17%from2025to2030.

*Accordingtothe

BankofEngland’sinflationcalculator

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

+5.8%

+4.7%

+4.3%

+2.7%

+5.6%

+5.2%

+5.0%

+2.1%

+1.7%

-3.0%

2017

2018

2019

2020

2021

2022

2023

2024

2025

f

EQ\*jc3\*hps68\o\al(\s\up18(.),r)

2025-

SunLifeCostofDyingReport2026

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2

Simpleattendedfuneralcosts

whereyoulive

–

Whereyoulivecanmakeabig

differencetothecostofafuneral.Whilethenationalaverageprice

ofasimpleattendedfuneralis£3,828,regionalcostscanvarybymorethan£1,000.

SunLifeCostofDyingReport2026

Aswe’vefoundinpreviousyears,NorthernIrelandisthemost

affordableplacetodieintheUK,withasimpleattendedfuneral

averaging£3,105.

Andat£4,897,Londonranksas

thehighestpricebysomemargin.That’samark-upof58%fromtheleasttothemostexpensiveregion.

Whenitcomestoburials,the

regionaldifferencesareespeciallystarkduetothecostofaburialplot,whichrangesfromanaverageof

£886inNorthernIrelandto£4,863inLondon.

7

NorthernIreland

£3,105

9

10

6

£3,7485

2

£3,4598

3

4

Nationalaverage

£3,828

Scotland

£3,655

NorthEastEngland

£3,411

YorkshireandtheHumber

£3,717

NorthWestEngland

EastandWestMidlands

£4,222

Wales

London

1£4,897

SouthWestEngland

£3,892

SouthEastand

EastofEngland

£4,173

SunLifeCostofDyingReport2026

3

Send–offcosts

18

3

Whichsend–offextrasarewe

choosing?

–

Asend-offisalltheoptional

extrasthatcanmakeafuneral

morepersonaltothedeceasedandtheirlovedones,likethe

transport,catering,andwake.

>send-offcosts

19

Popularsend–offitems

Organiserschoosingeachextra

Flowersandordersheetsarestillthesend-offextrasthatpeoplemostcommonlychoose.

Infact,everyoptionalitemis

atleastaspopularastheyearbefore–exceptforamemorialanddeathnotice.

Venuehire

72%

Flowers

72%

54%

Ordersheets

54%

44%

41%

43%

Catering

42%

41%

Memorial

44%

40%

Limohire

33%

32%

Deathnotice

37%

30%

Funeralnotice

30%

2025

2024

SunLifeCostofDyingReport2026

3

Howmuchare

wespendingonasend–off?

–

Amemorialisstillthemostexpensivesend-offextra,althoughitremainsnearlyunchangedfromthe

previousyear.

>send-offcosts

20

SunLifeCostofDyingReport2026

Send–offcostsarerising

Therehavebeenrisesinspend

acrosstheboard–withthe

exceptionofadeathnotice,whichhasstayedthesame.However,it’sflowersthathaveseenthebiggestjump一up9.0%to£242.

Ifyouweretochoosealloptionalitems,thetotalsend-offcost

wouldbe£2,976一anincreaseof4.0%on2024.

Butnoteverybodychooses

everything.Whenweightedbythepercentageoforganisers

pickingeachextra(seepreviouspage),theaveragesend-off

spendis£1,312.Thatequatestoariseof5.3%yearonyear.

Theaverage

send–offspendis

£1,312

Thatequatestoariseof5.3%yearonyear.

3

Howmuchare

wespendingonasend–off?

–

>send-offcosts

21

SunLifeCostofDyingReport2026

Memorial

Catering

Limohire

Venuehire

Flowers

Ordersheets

Funeralnotice

Deathnotice

2024

2025

Change

£1,038

£1,044

个+0.1%

£527

£564

个+7.0%

£431

£463

个+7.4%

£351

£362

+3.1%

£222

£242

个+9.0%

£123

£128

个+4.1%

£87

£91

个+4.6%

£81

£81

+0.0%

3

Whatdowespendonafuneralintotal?

–

Takingthemostcommonfuneraltype–asimpleattendedone–

andcombiningitwiththeaveragesend-offspend,thetotalcostis£5,140.

>send-offcosts

22

Totalfuneralspend

Giventheamountofchoicenowavailabletoconsumers,thepriceyoumightpayforafuneralcouldvarysignificantly.

Forinstance,costsavingscould

bemadebyoptingforadirect

cremation.Orchoosingmoreofthesend-offextrascouldpushuptheprice.Seepage37fortipsonkeepingthecostsdown.

Costofasimpleattendedfuneral

£3,828

+Averagespend

onasend–off

£1,312

=Total

£5,140

Professionalfees

Wealsoaskfuneralorganisersaboutprofessionalfees.Thisishowmuchtheyspentonhiringaprofessional–mostcommonlyasolicitor–to

administertheestate.

65%

ofpeopleorganisingafuneralsaytheyusedaprofessional

£2,635

istheaveragespendonprofessionalfees

SunLifeCostofDyingReport2026

SunLifeCostofDyingReport2026

4

Thefutureoffunerals

23

4

Whattypeoffuneralarepeoplechoosing?–

At53%,anattendedcremationisthemostpopulartypeoffuneral,althoughit’sdecreasedby2%onthepreviousyear.Incontrast,thepercentageoffuneralsthatare

burialshasgoneupby1%to26%.

24

21%ofpeopledescribethefuneraltheyorganisedasadirectcremation一alsoup1%ontheyear

before.Andawarenessofthislower-pricedoptionhasrisenyetagain,with85%nowawareofit.

That’sanincreaseof33%since2019.

67%ofpeopleareawareofdirectburials,butonly2%oforganiserssaythatthiswasthe

optiontheychosefortheirlovedone.

TypesoffuneralsarrangedintheUK(excludespublichealthfunerals)

AttendedcremationsBurialsDirectcremations

3%

23%

74%

2019

2020

2021

2022

2023

2024

59%

57%

57%

53%

55%

26%

25%

25%

27%

25%

14%

18%

18%

20%

20%

21%

26%*

53%

2025

*2%offuneralsaredescribedasdirectburials.

SunLifeCostofDyingReport2026

4

Whychoose

adirectcremation?–

Thenumberofdirectcremations

swelledduringthepandemic–outofnecessity–butthey’veremainedpopularevenintheyearsafter

COVID-19restrictions.

25

SunLifeCostofDyingReport2026

Adirectcremationisn’talwaysthepreferenceoftheorganiser.51%choosethistypeoffuneralbecausethedeceased

requestedit.

Adirectcremationalsoneedn’t

takeplaceinisolation.86%of

theseorganiserssaytheyheld

asmallgathering,wake,memorialservice–orcombinationof

these–beforehandorafterwards.Thishighlightshowimportant

somekindofservicecanbetothosegrieving.

51%

32%

27%

26%

18%

10%

Herearesomeofthereasonspeoplegivefororganisingadirectcremationrather

thanacremationwithaservice…

Requestedbydeceased

Simplertoorganise

Lessstressfultoorganise

Alreadyarrangedbythedeceased

Quickertoorganise

Preferredtospendthe

moneyonsomethingelse

Couldn’tafford

afuneralwithaservice

10%

4

What’ssurprisingaboutdirect

cremations?

–

Althoughawarenessofdirect

cremationsisnowveryhigh,not

everybodymayunderstandwhat

suchafuneralinvolves.Infact,31%offuneraldirectorsthinkconsumersdon’tknowallthefacts.

26

Herearesomeofthethingsthatorganisersofdirectcremationssaysurprisedthemabouttheprocess…

Comparedtotraditionalfunerals,Iwastakenabackbyhoweasy,

quick,andinexpensivethe

processis.Noceremony–justplainandrespectful.

Howquickandcompassionateit

waswhentheasheswerereturned.

Theywerebeautifulpackagedandhandedoverwithdignity.

Howsimpleandeasyitwasduringanemotionaltime.Onelessthingtogetstressedabout.

Directcremationskipseverything–noviewing,noembalming,no

servicebeforehand.

Howimpersonalitwas.Mydadwascollectedfromhome,thendeliveredbackinaboxinthe

formofhisashes.

Howlongwehadtowaitforthecremation.

Someofthelesser-knownfactsaboutdirectcremationinclude:

Mostlocalfuneraldirectorsoffer

adirectcremationserviceatalocalcrematorium–youdon’thaveto

chooseanonlineprovider.

Somereportbeingsurprisedbyextrascosts,suchasforacoffinorviewingthebody.

Themajorityofpeoplestillholdamemorial,service,orwakeintheirowntime,whichcanbeanadditionalcosttoconsider.

There’softenlimitedchoiceoverthedayortimeofthecremation.

SunLifeCostofDyingReport2026

4

Publichealthfunerals–

Apublichealthfuneralisorganisedbythelocalcouncilwhennoothersuitablearrangementsarebeing

made–forexample,whenthere’snobodytoorganisethefuneral

orwhenthedeceasedandtheirrelativescan’taffordtodoso.

27

Funeraldirectorson

whytheybidforpublichealthfunerals:

Andwhytheydon’tbid:

It’saverysimpleservice,andlovedonescan’tusuallymakeanydecisionsaboutwhat

takesplace.Localauthoritiesarelikelytorecoupcostsfromanysignificantestate.

7%offuneraldirectorsprovidepublichealthfunerals,with19%biddingforcontractswiththeirlocalauthorities.

Justtohelpreally–someonehasgottohelpthemout.There’snoprofitinit–it’sjustaservice,buteveryonewantstohaveadecentsend-off,don’tthey?

Normallywe’reaskedtoandhavedirectrequestsfromthecouncil.

Itgivesyouabitmorebusinessandmoreconnections.

Becausewehaveasenseof

responsibilitytohelpallfamilies–notjusttheonesthatcanafford

tohavewhatevertheywant.Soit’sreallyasenseofresponsibility.

Tobehonest,we’veprobablygot

enoughonourplateasitis.We’dhavetoemployanextrapairofhands

basicallyifweweretotakesomethinglikethaton.Soit’snotreallyworthit.

Thecontractprocessisfartoocomplicated.

Wejustdon’tputinforthecontractasthebiggercompaniesdoit.

Theyputalotmoretenderin.

Becausethecompanyknowit

wouldn’tbeviableandwouldn’tbeeffectiveinproducingarevenue.

SunLifeCostofDyingReport2026

4

Woodlandburials–

Inrecentyears,moreandmorepeoplehavebeenlookingforenvironmentallyfriendly

optionsfortheirfuneral.

28

isroughly£390.

SunLifeCostofDyingReport2026

Awoodlandburialis

oneofthemostpopularecoalternatives

Thebodyislaidtorestinits

naturalstate(withnoembalmingchemicals),inabiodegradablecoffin,amongaruralsetting.

Thereareusuallynoheadstonesorpermanentgravemarkers.

87%offuneraldirectorssaytheyhaveaccesstoawoodlandburialsite–althoughit’ssignificantly

lesscommoninNorthernIreland.

Overall,theyestimatethat6%offuneralstheyundertakearewoodlandburials.

9%ofthosewhohaveorganisedafuneralsaythey’dchoosea

woodlandorothereco-friendlysend-offforthemselves.

Thecostofawoodlandburial

plotaverages£2,207–justslightlylessthanthe£2,374foracemeteryburialplot.Andthefeeforaservice

“Iorganisedmydad’sfuneral,anditwasatWestburycrematorium–bishbash

bosh,outyougo.Mynan’sfuneralwasn’tlongafter,andthatwasatawoodland.Whatadifference.Thewholedaywas

yours–youcouldspendasmuchtimeasyouwanted.Imean,theyprobablypaidfortheprivilege–buttotally,

totallydifferent.”

4

Whatarethe

challengesfacing

thefuneralindustry?–

Whenitcomestothefutureofthe

industry,funeraldirectorscontinuetobeparticularlyworriedabouttherise

inpopularityofdirectcremations.Butotherconcernsvarywidely–fromlocalcompetitiontothelackofburialplots.

29

Here’swhatfuneraldirectorssayarethebiggestchallenges...

Adaptingtowhatourcommunityneedsfromus.Sopre-COVID,

directcremationsweren’treallyathing,andnowtheyare.It’sjustcontinuallychangingwithwhattheyneedfromustoservethem.

Probablypayments–justpeoplegenerallypromisingthatthey’regoingtocomebackandpayyouforyourservices,andthenthey

disappear.It’ssuchasensitivebusiness,andyoucan’tgo

roundandtakegoodsfor

whattheyoweus.

Areluctancetotalkaboutdeathwithinthegeneralpopulation.

Ithinkthelackofregulationbecauseit’sstillallowinganybodytoset

upandcallthemselvesafuneral

directorinaretailshopunitwith

verylittleexperience,knowledge,orexpertise.

Ithinkdirectcremationcompaniesarethebiggestthreatasit’snot

truthfulandit’sfalseadvertisingmostofthetime.Peopledon’tknowthecrematoriumtheir

lovedoneisgoingto–itcouldbeanywhereinthecountry.

Inmylocalarea,it’sprobablythelackofburialspace.

Atthemoment,it’sadeclineinthedeathratetobehonest–we’ve

hadsomewhatfewerfunerals