In some instances this role may also come under the responsibility of the local hospital.

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1 Public Health Funerals In some instances there are times when a person passes away and there is no-one available to make funeral arrangements. This usually happens when someone dies with no known blood relatives or has relatives that do not want or who are not able to be involved. In instances such as these when no suitable arrangements have been made then the Council has a responsibility under section 46 Public Health (Control of Disease) Act 1984 to ensure that the deceased receives a proper and dignified burial or cremation. In some instances this role may also come under the responsibility of the local hospital. Who can refer a funeral to the Local Authority? In most cases it will be HM Coroner s office who refers the case to the appointed proper officer at the Local Authority, however occasionally managers of residential homes or sheltered accommodation may do this or possibly even acquaintances of the deceased. In all instances the Local Authority to which the funeral is passed is dictated by where the deceased died, not where they lived. What happens next? Once a death has been referred to the proper officer at the Local Authority, then they will make every attempt to retrieve the deceased s belongings from the police or whoever has them. They will also carry out a full property search of the deceased s home in order to retrieve any documentation such as wills, information pertaining to the location of any relatives, any indication of religious beliefs or funeral preferences. The death is registered by the Council if it has not already been done. If details about family and friends are found, they will be told about the death and we will work with them if they want to take over responsibility for the funeral arrangements, otherwise we will seek information from them to enable our appointed officiant who will take the funeral service to personalise the service itself.

2 The officer responsible will make contact with creditors and debtors notifying them of the deceased s death. They will also inform utilities, banks, insurers and landlords. If a will is found the executor (the person who will be responsible for looking after your estate when you die) will be asked to make the funeral arrangements in line with the deceased person s wishes. The council will then take no further action. Who pays? The cost of the funeral is normally paid for using the money from the deceased persons estate. (A person s estate is all the belongings you own when you die). If there isn t enough money in their estate to meet the costs, the executor of the will is personally responsible. If the deceased person has not made a will the person who is arranging the funeral (normally the next of kin) is responsible for the funeral costs. Help may be available from other sources like charities and the department of works and pension. In the event that the cost of your funeral estimate is over what can be claimed then either your funeral director or bereavement services department will usually be happy to work with you in advising how to reduce these costs. If the next of kin is not prepared to arrange or pay for the funeral, for example if there isn t enough money in the deceased person s estate to pay for the funeral or the next of kin is unable to raise funds from elsewhere then they will be asked to make a written statement to confirm this. Property of the deceased In the event that the Local Authority take over the funeral arrangements then they will need to enter the deceased s home and undertake a property search. To enable this to happen any keys or property belonging to the deceased that family and friends have should be handed in for safekeeping. All property should be recorded and handed into the proper officer who will then then issue a receipt for it. Property should only be handed over to the legal representatives dealing with the deceased person s estate. This may not be family or friends because if a will has been made executors may have been chosen

3 If the deceased person s belongings are not worth anything in monetary value and the property was rented, the landlord is responsible for recovering the property and dealing with the contents If, after the funeral costs have been met and there is still some money left over, the proper officer for Public Health funerals will notify HM Treasury Solicitor at the Bona Vacantia department who will then follow the rules set down by the Secretary of State. Burial or Cremation? The decision over burial or cremation will be made by the proper officer dealing with the case and will be based on what information is discovered about the deceased. At Mansfield and Ashfield if we believe that there may be next-of-kin that may come forward in the future such as sons or daughters then we may opt for burial, likewise if we find paperwork indicating that they wanted to be buried, suitable arrangements will be made. In either case an appropriate religious or non-religious ceremony will be arranged depending on the deceased s beliefs (if we know what their beliefs were). If we are satisfied that there are no objections to cremation being the method of disposal then we would opt for cremation. There is a requirement in cremation law that there must not be any objection to cremation and where possible all relevant persons must be informed. At the crematorium a Public Health Funeral is just the same as any other funeral with a chapel service. Where possible the officiant who is taking the service will have been provided with information relating to the deceased s history before the funeral so that they can make the service a personal one. In the event that it is a burial a graveside service is normally held, this would be the same as any other graveside service apart from there would not be a gravestone to mark the grave. In all cases family and friends are welcome to attend. Provision of Public Health Funerals

4 As a Local Authority we have to ensure that we follow specific protocols when procuring services. The services of our appointed funeral director were obtained through a formal tendering process and our appointed funeral director will provide the following service:- To collect the deceased from place of death (within Mansfield or Ashfield District Council s geographic area) and return them to our funeral director s Chapel of Rest. To prepare the deceased and dress in a closed down gown To place the deceased in a basic foil coffin, complete with lining, nameplate and handles that conforms to the requirements for cremation. To provide a hearse to convey the deceased from their Chapel of Rest to a local crematorium/cemetery within the Mansfield or Ashfield District Council geographic region. To provide sufficient bearers to convey the deceased safely from the hearse to the final place of disposal. It is confirmed that should the service required be a cremation then it will be hearse direct to the crematorium with a simple service. It is confirmed that should the service required be a burial then it will be a graveside service. Additional to the above all disbursements will be paid by the funeral director (i.e. cremation/burial fees, medical fees, officiant s fees, headstone removal and refix fees) It is acknowledged that :- a) there will be no viewing of the deceased by family/friends b) there will be no direct contact with the family c) that in the event that HM Coroner or Police require the body to be removed to a hospital/mortuary outside of the District Councils areas then this will be facilitated. d) All instructions will be issued directly to the funeral director from either the Crematorium Registrar or Deputy Registrar e) It will be up to family and friends to provide flowers and their own transportation to the funeral. Recovery of Expenses Wherever possible the Council will recover expenses from the deceased s estate to limit the cost to the taxpayer. The following administration fees will be made and recovered from the estate Administration fee with/without property search:

5 Cost of funeral contract fee from Funeral Director and disbursements. If there is not enough money in the deceased person s estate to cover the administration costs a statement will have to be made. This will need to confirm what has been left in the deceased person s estate (including money possessions and property) and the charges may not apply.