Campaign launched to help plan funerals (From Warrington Guardian)

Campaign launched to help plan funerals

12:00pm Wednesday 8th August 2012 in News

Campaign launched to help plan funerals

UNIVERSITY students have produced a campaign to help people better plan their funerals.

Undergraduates, studying marketing at the University of Chester’s Padgate campus, have produced a report called ‘The Funeral Project’.

They have worked closely with parishes and clergy in the Church of England’s Great Budworth Deanery and based the survey on 150 members of the public, funeral directors and clergy.

Their aim was to highlight the pros and cons of the current approach to church services.

The study arose after churches noticed a dramatic fall in the number of church burials.

Rev Jane Proudfoot, who is set to become Rector of Grappenhall in September, said: “The students have become passionate about changing and challenging the misconceptions about the church funeral services.

“It has been great to work with them and to make connections between the church and students at the university.”

Their findings suggested that strengths of Church of England funerals include pastoral and bereavement care, the importance of tradition and community and the trust that people feel toward the clergy.

Weaknesses included the perception that church services are outdated, the inaccessibility of some clergy and a perceived inflexibility of what it acceptable to be included in the service.

The report recommends that the church should encourage people to plan their funeral in advance to avoid leaving loved ones in a lurch and to ensure they get their desired send off.