Pure Cremation | Media and Press

Pure Cremation Sponsors Dying Matters Launch Event

It is the first time that the leading provider of direct cremations in the UK has sponsored this event, organised by Dying Matters which is part of Hospice UK and campaigns to encourage people to break this last taboo and talk openly about dying, death and bereavement.

The event will be attended by around 100 representatives from the NHS, faith groups, the hospice movement, the Care Quality Commission and the Cremation Society of Great Britain.

Members of the public will also be there to get inspiration and advice on how to organise an event of their own to bring this challenging subject out into the open during Dying Matters Awareness Week planned for 14th – 20th May 2018.

Speakers will include author Kevin Toolis, whose book ‘My Father’s Wake’ was published last year, Gary Rycroft, chair of the Dying Matters Forum, Tracey Bleakley, Chief Executive of Hospice UK and Linda Magistris, CEO of The Good Grief Trust.

Catherine Powell, Customer Experience Director of Pure Cremation, said: “Our British reserve gets in the way of talking about how we want to spend our last days, what matters to us, and how we want to be remembered. Times have changed, and funerals are changing too, so it’s more important than ever to get this conversation going.

“In the absence of clear requests, grieving families go into “autopilot” and rely on the local undertaker to guide them through a traditional funeral, mainly because they’re in no state to research all of the options. The result may be an unsuitable funeral that costs more than the deceased would have wanted them to spend.

“Only one in four of us tell our families in advance what sort of funeral we would like to have, which is a great pity because chatting things through with loved ones can bring families closer together and ends confusion.

“Many people tell us that they want a celebration of life event at a favourite beauty spot, others reject the fuss and bother of a traditional send-off, but all are determined to remove uncertainty, prevent overspending and reduce distress.

“Having a conversation about your “goodbye” can be a very positive experience and Dying Matters Awareness Week is the biggest campaign in the UK, encouraging communities across the country to come up with their own events to get people talking about the only thing we can all count on.”
Events last year were diverse, ranging from coffee mornings and talks about palliative care to tours of crematoria and included some very public invitations to people to think about their mortality.

In Lincoln shoppers were invited to chalk up their ‘bucket list’ of things they’d like to do before they died, while the West Yorkshire town of Todmorden held 70 events in its ‘Pushing up the Daisies Festival’ which ended with a Firey Folky Funeral Feast.

Pure Cremation is the UK’s only dedicated provider of direct cremation – the no-fuss alternative to a traditional funeral. A direct cremation is a low-key affair in which the deceased person is collected and cared for before a cremation without any funeral service. The ashes are then returned to the family who can arrange their own farewells at a later date if they so wish.

Growing in popularity, direct cremations now account for in the region of seven per cent of all cremations in the UK. They appeal to people for a wide variety of reasons – some don’t like funerals, full stop, others don’t want to have a religious or formal ceremony. Some appreciate the freedom to arrange a very personalised farewell on a separate occasion, for others the sheer simplicity of the concept is attractive.

Catherine explained: “Families hold all sorts of commemorations after a direct cremation – be it scattering ashes in a favourite woodland, a thanksgiving service in the local church or lighting candles around the globe to join a scattered family together.

“Whatever their reasons, more people are choosing direct cremations for themselves, particularly after experiencing the direct cremation of a friend or relative.”

The Dying Matters In Your Community Launch Event is being held at Woburn House Conference Centre, Tavistock Square, London WC1H 9HQ, on 6 February 2018 and is fully booked.

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Fresh approach to funerals needed, claims Pure Cremation, as report highlights wildly varying cremation costs across UK

The most expensive cremation venue is Angus in Scotland at £1,070 and the cheapest is Morden in Surrey at £274 – depending on a variety of factors.

Now Pure Cremation, one of the UK’s leading specialists in direct cremation, is calling for a fresh look at the purpose of a funeral, whether the traditional formula delivers what families need and how the bereaved can give their loved ones a fitting send-off without getting into debt.

Catherine Powell, Director of Customer Experience at Pure Cremation, said: “This report shows that what we actually need is a completely fresh approach to funerals – one that suits the beliefs and budgets of today’s families.

“Pure Cremation has seen rapid growth in demand for their service as people discover that separating the cremation from the farewell is liberating, more personal and creates big savings.”

The company hopes to do for funerals what EasyJet and Airbnb have done for holidays – putting the consumer in charge, letting them decide what matters to them and what they’re prepared to spend.

A direct cremation is an alternative to a traditional funeral where the body is collected and cremated without a funeral service at the crematorium, leaving a family free to decide how, where and when to say goodbye.

While traditional burials or cremations are often formal and follow a rigid formula, a direct cremation changes the dynamic by allowing families to go straight to the most meaningful part of the process – the wake.

Separating the two parts of the funeral gives families time, and a new level of freedom, to plan a more personal send-off at a time and location that suits them.

Offering the same price for a cremation across the whole of England and Wales is just one of the ways Pure Cremation has begun transforming the funeral sector and started widening consumer choice.

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NHS organ donation vote shows why we MUST have end-of-life talk with our loved ones

Around 1,100 families denied consent last year – many because they were unsure of their deceased relatives’ wishes.

Now the man behind a direct cremation company shaking up the funeral industry is urging families to wake up to the importance of making their end-of-life plans known to loved ones.

Bryan Powell, who set up Pure Cremation with his wife Catherine, said: “When it comes to the uncomfortable subject of death we often don’t know how to get the conversation started.
“More than two-thirds of us (67 per cent) say it’s incredibly important that our final wishes are carried out after we die.

“Yet only a quarter of us tell our family about our wishes about organ donation consent and preferred funeral arrangements.

“Confusion over these things can lead to uncertainty, family tension and even spark feuds at the worst possible time.

“The changes to organ donation consent highlight the importance of expressing your wishes before you go – giving more families the confidence they’re doing the right thing when the time comes.”
Prime Minister Theresa May and Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn both backed the change in the law.
Four in five people say they would donate their organs but less than half that number have registered.

A direct cremation is an alternative to a traditional funeral where the body is collected and cremated in the days immediately following the death, without a funeral service at the crematorium.

While traditional burials or cremations are often formal and follow a rigid formula, a direct cremation changes the dynamic by allowing families to go straight to the most meaningful bit – the wake.

Now families can take control, and take all the time they need to plan a more personal send-off when and where is right for them.

By ripping up the rulebook and taking a completely fresh approach, Pure Cremation is already beginning to transform the funeral sector.

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Pure Cremation commemorates ground-breaking at Charlton Park Crematorium

In what was a busy week, Pure Cremation addressed Andover’s first ever Funeral Stakeholder’s meeting, securing planning consent for the new crematorium, plus directors and co-founders, Bryan and Catherine Powell, invited Canon Jill Bentall and representatives from local independent funeral providers, S & J Maddocks, to commemorate the start of the build programme, along with appointed contractors, Amiri Construction.

When complete in spring 2019, Charlton Park Crematorium will primarily meet the needs of Andover locals, with the ability to provide surrounding areas with funeral services. The new crematorium gives local families a chance to say goodbye to a loved one a little closer to home, no longer having to make the lengthy journey to Basingstoke or Salisbury. People in Andover will be able to continue to have traditional funerals in the parish churches, and civil celebrants are on-hand to provide families with a farewell experience suited to them.

Charlton Park Crematorium will also serve Pure Cremation’s direct cremation customers from across the UK, with interest in this modern alternative continuing to grow after David Bowie specifically chose this simple style of send-off.

Catherine Powell, director and co-founder of Pure Cremation, explained why it was so important to involve others who support the bereaved in Andover at such an early stage in the build programme: “The vision for Charlton Park Crematorium is of a valued community asset local people can be proud of, and which will provide families with the quality farewell experience they deserve – whatever their final wishes may be. We are already working closely with the likes of clergy, civil celebrants and funeral home staff to achieve this vision and to meet the changing needs of Andover’s families.

“Funeral care-givers in the area are setting a truly innovative example and so we were delighted to accept Canon Jill Bentall’s invitation to speak at the first Funeral Stakeholder Meeting held at Bridge St Methodist Church. It was a great opportunity to outline our vision and answer questions.

“We are very grateful for the support we have received from the professional community since we first revealed our plans for Charlton Park Crematorium. Many stakeholders have taken the time to understand our proposition –including S & J Maddocks funeral directors – and we look forward to continuing to develop a collaborative relationship built around offering every family the choice of a meaningful farewell on their terms.“

Charlton Park Crematorium represents a major investment by Pure Cremation in creating a state-of-the-art crematorium that is both environmentally and architecturally sensitive on vacant land in Andover.

The detailed landscaping scheme for the 11-acre site includes the retention of all protected trees and enhanced boundary planting, to create a tranquil setting for contemplation and remembrance. Careful management of the cremations and modern cremation equipment will mean that as well as releasing scrubbed, filtered air that exceeds the regulatory requirements, each cremator unit will be operating at maximum efficiency, which results in a carbon footprint that is up to 50% smaller than other venues.

The crematorium will feature a chapel which seats up to 80 mourners, a cremator hall, vestry, cosy farewell space for small gatherings, administrators’ office and car parking. The facilities will enable Pure Cremation to provide an improved service; with greater flexibility on the timing of committals, and innovative options such as ‘virtual attendance’ and ‘virtual witness’, among the many additional benefits for its customers.

In a move which reaffirms its commitment to Andover, Pure Cremation will relocate its headquarters from Newbury to Charlton Park Crematorium. With all its services brought together under one roof families will have the reassurance of knowing their loved ones are being looked after from the moment they come into Pure Cremation’s care until the scattering or return of the ashes.

Rev. Canon Jill Bentall said: “I was glad to have the chance to visit the site and be part of the official ceremony as work begins. I join with the Rev. Alex Randle-Bissell, Vicar of Charlton, who was also present, in saying that at last it is good to see the site being made available to serve Andover and so many others at a very important moment. We and others involved in funeral care in the area look forward to working with Pure Cremation to provide the best possible service to all who need it.”

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Is generation Z breaking the last taboo?

While almost two thirds of Brits say they would find it ‘very stressful’ to arrange a funeral without knowing what kind of send-off their loved ones wanted, this study suggests millions of Baby Boomers will have seen their parents pass without knowing their final wishes.

Reassuringly, almost two thirds (62%) of 18-25 year olds say they have actually had a conversation about mortality. Almost half (45%) are more likely to turn to a friend, with mum coming a close second (41%); however young people are less likely to speak to dad about death (30%), than to gran or grandad (35%) or a sibling (32%).

Interestingly, young Brits today are more comfortable talking about their own death (60%), than someone else’s (54%). Despite ushering in a new era of openness, they confess to finding the conversation sad (49%), scary (41%), difficult (33%) and uncomfortable (33%). In stark contrast, the over 65s are more likely to use words such as necessary (57%), important (50%) and natural (39%).

Catherine Powell, co-founder and director of Pure Cremation, said: “These findings show that while avoidance of talking about dying is an epidemic among the over 65s, this age group has the best understanding of the value of the conversation.

“Although there is still a lot of work to be done to remove any fear and awkwardness around the subject, it is hugely encouraging that a brave new generation of young people are up for tackling this challenge – and the great news is they are actually getting on with it and talking about the fact that eventually our time will come to an end.”

Surprisingly, the older generation is only slightly better prepared for the end than young people today, with 16% of over 65s saying they avoid talking about death because they haven’t thought about their final wishes, whereas one in five (20%) of 18-24s reveal they haven’t made a plan for their own send-off.

And both generations do have something in common; the main reason they give for not talking about death is that ‘the idea of death is scary’.

The research reveals the part technology might play in breaking down the taboo of death. More than half (51%) of 18-25 year olds would consider discussing the subject via an online forum, with more than four in ten willing to use an app (44%) or Skype or FaceTime (41%).

Sam Owen is a relationship coach and psychologist who has worked with Pure Cremation on its Dead Good Report – a state-of-the-nation report which looks at attitudes to death and dying, and new funeral trends, such as the growth of direct cremation.

Sam Owen said: “We must all be completely honest with ourselves and others when it comes to the subject of death, not least because it is a natural part of life. I would urge people of all ages to talk about death. Make it as emotionally comfortable as possible; and use these conversations to give you perspective, motivation and energy – as reminder of the limited time we all have.

“Being open about death can prepare us for when a loved one passes, giving us resilience through the grieving process. Importantly, if you don’t have the big conversation with those close to you, you will miss out on learning what you can do to fulfil the final wishes of your loved ones when the time comes.”

To find out more information about Pure Cremation, please visit https://www.purecremation.co.uk/ or call 0800 182 2163. To download the Dead Good Report, please visit www.purecremation.co.uk/thedeadgoodreport

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