Cost of funerals increasing dramatically.

Our Fair Funerals campaign
Funeral poverty, like food and fuel poverty has become almost unavoidable for those on the lowest incomes in our society today.

Our work with those struggling to pay for a funeral evolved out of the people we met through running our other services. One man had lost his home as a direct result of the debts he had incurred  in paying for the funeral of a family member.

As we looked into the issues surrounding funeral costs we came across what could be described as the perfect coming together of conditions likely to make it nearly impossible for those on a low income to avoid funeral poverty.
 

The cost of funerals rose by 80% in 2004-15.

The average shortfall between social fund funeral payments and the price of funeral is £1,372.

47% of social fund applications are rejected


By simply helping people take a breath, slow down, giving them somewhere to think things through without pressure, and encouraging them to shop around, Down to Earth saves clients an average of £1,400 on the price of a funeral. For many this can be enough to avoid a decline into debt after the death of a loved one.

 

This post from Quaker Social Action which we are proud to support.

 

Andrew

The setting of the sun!

It is with great sadness that we say goodbye to Avril who is moving on to bigger things. Avril has been a key part of making Andrew Phillips Funeral Services what it is today as she was involved with the very start up of the business in creating logo's and design and even our branding Colour!

Avril we will really miss you and good luck with your future career!
 

Tempting as it was to post some of the early photo's from Avril's career we will mark this occasion with the setting of the Sun!

 


Photo's from the past

As some of you may know we have been asking for Photo's of a building of when it was originally built however were not able to find any.

Well at the Car Wash in aid of St. Richard's hospice Mr. Bunn who came to get his car washed provided us with some photo's of when he had the property and it is the closet we can get to what the building would have looked like originally.

So Many thanks to Mr. Bunn and for those of you who are interested enjoy!

Funeral Directors in the local community

Being part of a local community gives us a great sense of belonging and it has been a huge privilege to have been welcomed to Worcestershire as a new business in Malvern and to have been asked to look after so many families in their time of need.

Every family is different and we know that the loss of a loved one will affect people in different ways. With this in mind we believe that working with families to create a completely bespoke and personalised funeral that honours the life of the person who has passed away is essential to saying goodbye.

We work with families to tailor a funeral to the needs of both the family and the person who has passed away, by giving many options and allowing their family to build a completely bespoke funeral service that reflects the life of their loved one, at a price that they are comfortable with and with no restrictions. It is important to us that we offer a clear and itemised pricing structure so that you always know exactly what services we are providing.

So if you would like to know more then please feel welcome to contact us on 01684 563983. 

We are able to arrange funerals either at our office or at your home 7 days a week at a convenient time for you. Our usual office hours are 8:30-5:30 Monday to Friday, however, we are always able to open the office by request outside of these hours.

We offer full secure pre-payment plans which are registered by the funeral planning authority. We can also record your funeral wishes as a complimentary service.

This time last year with your help we raised over £500 for MacMillan Cancer Support and so for the 2nd year running we are going to take part in the world’s biggest coffee morning on Friday, 25th September 2015. This is MacMillan Cancer Support’s biggest fundraising event for the year and so we are hoping to raise even more this year. So if you missed out last year why not come and join us for cake, cappuccino’s, latte’s and hot chocolates in aid of MacMillan Cancer Support. Andrew will again be manning the coffee machine all day and putting on his barista hat. A special thank you goes to Alison at Malvern Buffets who will be providing fresh cakes for the Coffee Day free of charge.

Macmillan cancer support logo.png

Apprentiship Vacancy

We are looking for an apprentice to join our team as part of a Heart of Worcestershire College

Working week

39hrs see other information for shifts

Apprenticeship duration

12-15 Months

Possible start date

31 Aug 2015

Date posted

20th July 2015

Apprenticeship level

Intermediate Level Apprenticeship

Reference number

VAC000670331

Positions

1 available

Duties to include;

  • Administration duties including arranging funerals
  • Assist clients via telephone or face-to-face
  • Attendance at funerals as part of the funeral team
  • General housekeeping duties in the office
  • Working with Third Parties to arrange funerals
  • Care of the deceased
  • Delivering paperwork to Third Parties

 

Requirements and prospects

Desired skills

  • Good communicator
  • Literate
  • Numerate
  • Able to work independently
  • Good IT skills
  • Good telephone manner
  • Asks for help when unsure
  • Team player
  • Able to follow instruction

 

Personal qualities

  • Positive attitude
  • Trustworthy
  • Self-motivated
  • Honest
  • Enthusiastic
  • Has integrity
  • Can-do attitude

 

Qualifications required

Maths and English A-C Grade GCSE or equivalent.

 

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