An Expected Death
Even though a death may be expected, nothing prepares you for the emotional shock of losing a loved one.
The first thing to remember is that we are here to help, if at any time you are unsure what to do, or if you feel your circumstances differ from the below, please contact us. You do not need to have registered the death to ask us for advice or start discussing funeral arrangements.
Please note that if the deceased suffered from an industrial disease, the death will always be referred to the coroner by the GP. See our sudden death page for more information.
An expected death has occurred at a hospital.
Most hospitals have their own Mortuary, and so immediate removal of the deceased is not required, if this is not the case, the hospital will inform us of the death and we will make arrangements to move the deceased to our Chapel of Rest.
All hospitals have a Bereavement Services team, you should speak to them to determine when the Cause of Death Certificate will be ready. This will then be emailed to the Register Office, you can contact your local registrar to arrange an appointment to register the death.
Some hospitals have an in house registrar, in which case the Bereavement Services team can book an appointment for you.
You can contact us whenever you are ready.
An expected death has occurred at a hospice.
Most hospices have their own Mortuary, and so immediate removal of the deceased is not required, if this is not the case, the hospice will inform us of the death and we will make arrangements to move the deceased to our Chapel of Rest.
The hospice will let you know when the Cause of Death Certificate will be ready. This will then be emailed to the Registry Office, you can contact your local Registrar to arrange an appointment to register the death.
You can contact us whenever you are ready.
An expected death occurred at a care home.
The home will contact us to make arrangements for the deceased to be moved to our Chapel of Rest.
The home will also inform the GP of the deceased that they have passed away, who will produce the Cause of Death Certificate. You should make contact with the GP surgery directly to find out when the Cause of Death Certificate will be ready. This will then be emailed to the Registry Office, you can contact your local Registrar to arrange an appointment to register the death.
You can contact us whenever you are ready.
An expected death occurred at home.
If the deceased has been receiving palliative care, contact the nursing team whose care they have been under, they will make arrangements for the death to be legally confirmed, and will usually inform the GP surgery as part of their process.
If it is during surgery hours you can contact the deceased's regular GP, the GP may or may not attend. If you are comfortable doing so, the GP may ask you to perform certain tasks to confirm that death has occurred, if they are satisfied that the person has died, it is not essential they attend, although most still will.
If it is out of surgery hours, you can contact the out-of-hours doctors, who will do the same as a GP, though they will not usually attend in person.
Once the above has happened, please contact us to make arrangements for us to bring the deceased into our care.
How do I register a death?
A death must be registered at the Registry Office within the district where the person died, regardless of where they lived.
Find your local Registry Office.
In the event that the coroner is involved, please see our Sudden Death page.
The attending doctor will email the Medical Certificate of Cause of Death directly to the Registry Office, once you know it has been sent, please call the Registry Office to arrange a telephone appointment.
The following people are permitted to register a death:
-
A relative.
-
Someone present at the death.
-
An administrator from the hospital, or a care home manager.
-
The person making funeral arrangements.
-
A solicitor acting on your behalf.
During the registration call, it is handy to have the following with you, although none of these are essential:
-
Birth certificate.
-
Council Tax bill.
-
Driving licence.
-
Marriage or civil partnership certificate.
-
NHS medical card.
-
Passport.
-
Proof of address (eg utility bill).
You will need to provide the following information to the Registrar:
-
The person’s full name at the time of death.
-
Any names previously used, eg maiden name.
-
The person’s date and place of birth.
-
Their last address.
-
Their occupation.
-
The full name, date of birth and occupation of a surviving or late spouse or civil partner.
-
Whether they were getting a State Pension or any other benefits.
The Registrar will give you:
-
As many copies of the Death Certificate as you think you will need (currently £11 each).
-
A green form, required for the funeral to take place. They may offer to email this to us, in which case the Registrar will keep the original.
The Registrar will also offer the Tell Us Once Service.
I can't attend the Registry Office local to the death.
Once the Cause of Death Certificate has been sent to the Registrar in the district where the death occurred, make an appointment at the most convenient Registry Office, you must tell them you want to 'Register by Declaration'.
You will then go through the Registration procedure as normal, the information will be sent to the Registry Office in the district the death occurred, and they will issue all the paperwork and post it to you.
Please note that this method may delay the funeral, and should be used only if there is no alternative.