Tag: Meadow Burial

About Natural Burial

We receive a lot of questions about natural burial and what we do. We also sometimes read and hear information and opinions that are potentially misleading. Therefore, in a series of blogs we aim to answer questions and put minds at rest regarding natural burial, environmentally friendly funerals, and the services we provide. If there is question you would like answering please contact our team who would be happy to help.

Is natural burial really more environmentally friendly? – Yes, natural burial allows only environmentally friendly coffins, caskets or shrouds to be used. The deceased is not embalmed. Graves are dug by hand to a depth that maximises aerobic decomposition. And the burial grounds are maintained with a light touch to encourage nature and biodiversity. Furthermore, memorial options such as bird boxes, insect habitats and hedgehog homes support wildlife. The ultimate natural memorial is also available, a beautiful tree provides a lasting legacy for future generations to benefit from and enjoy.

Are we not running out of burial space? – Whilst this may be partially true in built-up areas where land has been used for housing, retail and factories. The fact is that we have been burying our dead in the UK for tens of thousands of years without problem.  It has been estimated that if every death in the UK resulted in a burial this would count for only approximately 750 acres of land per year. There are also now over 300 natural burial grounds in the UK, a similar volume to the number of crematoria, which means that almost everyone has a natural burial ground reasonably close to their home.

Does natural burial cost more? – In many areas the cost of a plot and interment in a natural burial ground is much lower than in a local municipal cemetery. Natural burial is also comparable in cost to cremation in many areas, whilst also ensuring a beautiful, peaceful place to visit and remember loved ones.

What will happen to the burial ground in the future? – Our natural burial grounds will be left to nature, to ensure nature and biodiversity thrives and the community has a beautiful place to visit. Other natural burial grounds will be placed into trust. If you are unsure regarding your local natural burial ground feel free to contact them, we are sure they would welcome the opportunity to explain their future plans.

Can we have floral tributes at the funeral? – Yes. We simply ask that you don’t use plastic trays, florist foam (oasis) or other materials that are environmentally unfriendly. There are an increasing number of florists who offer green alternatives. And if you are lucky enough to have a garden, what could be more personal than picking a selection of home grown flowers for your loved one.

Do you really have picnics at the graveside? – Yes, during the warmer months many families have picnics at the natural burial ground. We only conduct one full burial a day, so you have the time to spend as you wish. Our team remain available for you and we can provide tea, coffee, squash and music via quality blue-tooth speakers. Our aim is to provide you everything you need to ensure a personal goodbye in a way that’s appropriate and special.

Natural Burial Locations

Prestwold
Scraptoft
Wrottesley Park

Learning about Green Funerals

We understand that many people would like to know more about green funerals but may find it difficult to find information. Therefore, we offer various options to help the public, community groups, and funeral service professionals to be more aware of how a goodbye can be as environmentally friendly as possible.

You can arrange to meet a member of our team at one of our natural burial grounds at any time, we can also visit you.

Community Groups

We can visit your community group and conduct presentations on Making a funeral greener, Cost-effective Funeral Services, or Natural Burial. The presentation can be general or can include the services provided by The Natural Burial Company. The presentation will finish with a question and answer session and information will be available to take away.

Alternatively, groups can visit our natural burial grounds for a tour and explanation of natural burial, what we offer, and how all funerals can be greener.

Funeral Service Professionals

Celebrants, funeral directors and arrangers, florists, end of life doulas and anyone involved in bereavement and funeral services is welcome to arrange to visit our burial grounds. We can also visit branches and offices to provide information to help professionals be better equipped to help support clients and the general public regarding green funerals.

The General Public

Everyone is welcome to contact us at any time for further information. You can phone on (0116) 222 0247 or email and we can send information by email or post.

A personal visit to a natural burial ground is often the best option if you are able, this allows the greatest understanding of natural burial and how we encourage nature and ensure a natural legacy for all in our care.

Our team are here to help everyone to make the right choices for themselves, their loved ones, and the environment.

Natural Burial Locations

Prestwold
Scraptoft
Wrottesley Park

Helping you to make an informed choice

When arranging a funeral service many people look for environmentally friendly options. But if the information you require is not available how do you know you are making the right decision?

For example, many “traditional” coffins have gold, silver or bronze coloured plastic handles. It is believed that up to 3 million of these single use plastic handles are used each year. Alternative handles, such as rope or wood, are available, but they are not always listed within a coffin range.

However, alternatives are available for both traditional and more modern styles of coffin and casket. Accordingly we are asking for all in funeral service to ensure that this open “informed choice” is available to all when arranging a funeral service.

To play our part in helping everyone to make an informed choice we now offer a new complete range of environmentally friendly coffins, caskets, and shrouds. For all coffins and caskets our website and literature will provide details of materials used and where it was weaved/made/manufactured. We believe that this will allow a greater understanding of not only the coffins available, but also the environmental impact they may have.

Furthermore, as supporting the bereaved and fighting funeral poverty is key to our ethos, we do make sure that our coffins, caskets and shrouds are fairly priced as well as being as green as possible.

Our range includes Cardboard, Bamboo, Willow and Woollen, as well as the Earthcare Coffin made predominantly using recycled paper and bark timber from FSC forests. We can also offer additional coffins upon request and are happy to provide the green credentials for all.

Whilst we offer a comprehensive range we do appreciate that you may have your own family funeral director that you may wish to use. Many funeral directors offer a comprehensive range of coffins and caskets and will be happy to help meet your requests. We allow all environmentally friendly coffins in our burial grounds.

We would welcome the opportunity to answer any questions you may have. Our team are available on (0116) 222 0247 or

Natural Burial Locations

Prestwold
Scraptoft
Wrottesley Park

Caring for the Environment, and Saving Money

We care passionately for the environment and for those in our care.  We also do everything we can to support the bereaved and to eliminate funeral poverty.

It is widely believed that the cost of burial is high.  For municipal cemeteries this can be true, as lack of space and other factors lead to ever spiralling prices.  However green burials are different, and beautiful, natural funerals can be arranged, often for a fraction of the cost.

At The Natural Burial Company we have been looking into burial prices in our local areas and have been surprised by our findings.  A green funeral at a natural burial ground is by far the most environmentally friendly funeral service available. However, as well as helping to care for nature and protect our future, natural burial will also save you money.

So to help you make informed choices we have listed below the prices for each of our burial grounds compared to the local city/town cemetery.  To keep things simple we have compared full burials only.  Although similar comparative savings are available when considering cremated remains burials and memorial options.

Leicester

At our Scraptoft natural burial ground on the outskirts of Leicester a full burial plot is £770.  The interment fee (gravedigging and administration) is £450.  Therefore, the total cost of a new grave with interment is £1,220.

Compare this to the costs of a lawn grave at Gilroes Cemetery, Leicester of £1,312 for the plot, and interment fees of £752 (total £2,064) for a resident of Leicester.  Fees for non-residents of Leicester are doubled (total £4,128).  A permit to erect a memorial adds a further £200.00

At Scraptoft, as at all of our burial grounds, you can also choose your plot and there are no additional charges, wherever you live.

Wolverhampton

Our Wrottesley Park natural burial ground close to Wolverhampton has larger overhead costs, hence is slightly more expensive than our other burial grounds.  However, whilst the plot cost of £900 and interment fees of £450 total £1,350 this is much less than the local cemetery at Danescourt.

The exclusive rights for a private plot at Danescourt costs £2,030, interment fees are £1,040 (total £3,070).  For a non-resident of Wolverhampton a 50% surcharge is added, making the total £4,605.  A memorial permit for a headstone adds £150.

There is a natural burial area at Bushbury. Plots here are charged at £1,100 (add 50% surcharge for non-resident), the interment fee of £690 makes the total cost £1,790.

You can purchase a plot in advance, however an additional £150 is added for this.  No charge is made by The Natural Burial Company for choosing and purchasing a plot in advance.

Loughborough

Prestwold Natural Burial Ground near Loughborough was one of the very first natural burial grounds in the midlands, opening in 1999.  A full burial plot is £770 and interment fees £450 (total £1,220).

For a standard burial the local Loughborough cemetery charges £777 for a traditional grave and £523 interment (total £1,300).  A lawn grave option is available for a total for a Loughborough resident of £1,118.  Once the memorial permit cost (£166) is added, this then totals £1,284.  The memorial permit charge is also applicable for traditional graves.

As with many other cemetery authorities though, Loughborough charge additional costs for non-residents of the town.  A resident of Charnwood would need to pay double fees and one who resides outside of Charnwood would pay triple.  There is also no option at present to purchase plots in advance.

We provide this information to help you to make informed choices.  In a world where funeral poverty is real and value for money is so important for all, we believe that everyone should be aware of the options available to them. Everyone can make a real difference to the environment and leave a beautiful, natural legacy for future generations whilst saving money.

Note: All prices sourced from local authority websites July 2021.  If corrections are required please inform us and we will make immediate changes.

Natural Burial Locations

Prestwold
Scraptoft
Wrottesley Park

Natural Burial during Covid – Update 14th May 2021

As you may be aware, restrictions on attending funeral and memorial services are being eased from Monday 17th May 2021.  However, some restrictions do remain and we wish to confirm how this will impact upon burial and memorial services at our natural burial grounds.

We have carefully considered how we can maximize the number of people who can arrange a burial service, whilst ensuring that social distancing can be safely adopted at the burial grounds and in our car parks.  Therefore,  we are pleased to announce that from Monday 17th May a total of fifty (50) people may attend full burial services at our natural burial grounds.  This is subject to social distancing being observed and all present abiding by the guidelines in place at the time of the service.

In order to help us prepare for services we request that we are provided with numbers attending in advance of any service if the number attending will exceed 25 people.  This will allow our team to take the appropriate precautions.  Confirmation of regulations and any additional requirements will also be provided to the funeral director or person arranging the burial at the earliest opportunity prior to the service.

With regards to services for cremated remains and memorial events such as tree planting, a maximum of thirty people are able to attend.  Again, we will contact the arranger prior to these services to ensure that there is a clear understanding of the regulations and to ensure the highest levels of safety for those present.

We will endeavor to remove all restrictions on numbers at the earliest legal and practical opportunity.  In the meantime we will work to see if we are able to increase the numbers who may attend services if this can be done safely.  Please accept our assurance that we are dedicated to helping and supporting everyone attending services and visiting our natural burial grounds, whilst doing everything we can to keep everyone safe.

We can, and will, continue to do everything we can to help support the bereaved, encourage nature and ensure biodiversity.  We are here for you at or on (0116) 222 0247.

Natural Burial Locations

Prestwold
Scraptoft
Wrottesley Park

The Great Big Green Week – Working Together, Making a Difference

Caring for the environment is key to everything we do.  Therefore, we are very proud to have joined The Great Big Green Week which will be taking place countrywide in September.

At each of our burial grounds, Prestwold (near Loughborough), Scraptoft (Leicester) and Wrottesley Park (Wolverhampton), we will be holding an event to raise awareness of environmentally friendly funeral services, whilst also supporting local green community groups.

And we are inviting companies, groups and individuals to join us at these events so we can all make a difference.

Funeral Directors, Florists, Celebrants and Suppliers – Do you provide environmentally friendly services?  If so, why not join us?  We want to help people to be aware of the choices they  have for ensuring a green send off for themselves or their loved ones.

Community Groups – Are you an organiser for, or a member of, a community group with an environmental focus?  We would love to have you at your local event.

Local Walking Groups – We wish to arrange a walk at each of our events.  Would your group like to lead this walk?

Wildlife Groups – It would be great to have you attend to promote your work.

Have we missed you out? – If you are interested in supporting The Great Big Green Week and have something to offer but don’t fit into the above, no problem.  We would love to talk to you about what you can offer.

For further information or to express an interest please contact Christopher by email at   It would be great to have a broad section of bereavement service and community groups present.  And of course, everyone is invited to attend.

Further details regarding events nationwide can be found www.greatbiggreenweek.com

Together we can make a difference.  Thank you.

 

Natural Burial Locations

Prestwold
Scraptoft
Wrottesley Park

Our Commitments

We take great pride in the important role we play in caring for the bereaved and the environment, and are dedicated to doing all we can to help make a positive difference.  Key to much that we do are our core commitments.  We think it would also be beneficial to share these commitments with you:

Care and Support for the Bereaved

We will do whatever we can to help those in time of need.  This includes our personal availability and the services we provide.  We will only conduct one burial a day at each of our burial grounds, ensuring that there are no time constraints on services.  We help support and advise on Family Led Services and DIY funerals.  We can also provide shelters, chairs, a quality blue tooth speaker and refreshments (when Covid regulations allow) to ensure that a final goodbye is everything that it should be.

Personalised services can be arranged and themed funerals, picnics and evening torch-lit services have all been conducted.  Grave plots can be chosen and a complete range of memorials is available, including trees and nature homes to ensure a natural legacy for future generations.

Care for the Environment

Caring for the environment is one of the biggest challenges we all face today.  As such, our burial grounds are developed and managed to encourage nature and make a positive difference to the environment.  Natural burial is so much more environmentally friendly than cremation and traditional burial, and helps ensure beautiful, natural areas for the future.

Trees are essential to the balance of nature and play an enormous role in removing damaging particles from the air, helping flood control, supporting many life forms and providing a calming and positive place to visit.  Promoting bio-diversity also ensures habitats for so many forms of life, essential to our planet.

We will care and develop our burial grounds with a light touch to allow nature to thrive, with the associated benefits for us all.  And, within time, all of our burial grounds will be left to nature as woodlands and meadows for the benefit of all.

Fighting Funeral Poverty

We understand that funeral poverty is very real for so many people.  Therefore, we are committed to ensuring that our prices are low, ensuring burial services and memorials are available for much lower costs than many traditional cemeteries.

We can help and support simple family led services to minimise costs at what is already a difficult and stressful time.  And are available to advise how other costs can be reduced.

Our Direct Natural Burial Service also allows a simple, cost effective burial, with all of the advantages of direct cremation.  Whilst also supporting the environment and ensuring a beautiful place to visit and remember.

Helping Future Planning

An increasing number of people are looking to plan, and in some cases pay for, their funeral service.  This allows peace of mind and removes the financial burden and/or the worry of making the wrong decisions for those left behind.  Future planning also ensures that any special requests you have are not forgotten.  This could be personalisation of a service with a theme, alternative transport (a VW Camper or Horse Drawn Hearse for example), or music.  Alternatively putting “money behind the bar” for family and friends to enjoy a toast and share memories of good times.

Burial plots can be chosen and paid for in advance (at today’s price) and we can help you to prepare documents detailing personal wishes.  Many people find that this process is not morbid, rather is a positive and enlightening experience.  And the plans for your final goodbye can be amended as you find new music or enjoy new hobbies.

Our team are here for you and for the environment.  If we can help in any way, or if you would like further information regarding our commitments and services, you are welcome to contact us on (0116) 222 0247 or by email

Beautiful Daffodils

Natural Burial Locations

Prestwold
Scraptoft
Wrottesley Park

Natural Burial Inspiration – Awen Clement

Very personal, beautiful, words from our friend and colleague Awen Clement.  Inspired by Wrottesley Park Natural Burial Ground.

 

When my human days are done

Let gentle hands wrap my body in love and cloth

Let loving arms carry me to the forest at dusk and as the birds sing their end of day lament to the sun

Lay me down in the sweet earth, tuck me in with the earthworms while stars fall and the old oaks look on

 

Awen Clement

Natural Burial Locations

Prestwold
Scraptoft
Wrottesley Park

Dispelling the Myths

We have received contact from a number of people worried regarding the availability of burial services during lockdown.  Therefore, we thought it best to put minds at rest and clarify that we continue to provide a full service to all:

Natural Burials are continuing.  There is no stipulation that those with covid must be cremated. We are available for you, whenever you need us.

The attendance limit at full burial services is currently 30 people.

We can arrange Direct Natural Burials for those who require a simple, low-cost service.  Direct Natural Burial has great advantages over direct cremation as you are supporting the environment and have a beautiful, natural place to visit and remember in the future.

We remain available to conduct burials at weekends and outside of traditional hours.

There is no time-limit on the length of the burial service.  What matters are your wishes to provide an appropriate goodbye for your loved one.

You can also arrange burials of cremated remains.  The attendance limit is currently 6 people.

All of our burial grounds remain open to visitors.

You can pre-purchase burial plots.  The plot is purchased at today’s price.  Many people are finding this a comfort during these most difficult of times.

We are available by Zoom and WhatsApp as well as phone and email.

Remember, you are welcome to contact us at any time.  We are here to advise, help and support everyone.

Natural Burial Locations

Prestwold
Scraptoft
Wrottesley Park

Answering your questions

We understand that whilst the vast majority wish to care for the environment, many have little knowledge of green funerals and woodland burial.  So to help, here are the answers to some of the questions we have recently been asked:

Is natural burial better for the environment? – Yes, cremation requires large quantities of fuel and releases pollutants into the environment.  Modern filtration is improving this, but issues remain.  Furthermore for natural burial, shrouds or environmentally friendly coffins are used, the grave is dug by hand and trees are planted to enhance the environment.

Is green burial more expensive? – No, plots in our burial grounds are lower than most traditional cemeteries.  Having a direct burial further reduces costs.  You genuinely can help protect the environment and save money.

Where is my local natural burial ground?  – We currently have natural burial grounds at Prestwold near Loughborough, Scraptoft near Leicester and Wrottesley Park near Wolverhampton.  Anyone can be buried at our natural burial grounds and there are no additional fees for those who live away from the area.

Are there time constraints for a green funeral service?  – We do not limit times for burials.  Services can be booked at any time, on any day, and we only have one service each day so your time is not limited.  Picnics can be held around the graveside and music played.

Can we book a plot in advance? – Yes, all plots can be personally selected and paid for in advance.

Can we bury or scatter ashes? – Yes, you can choose a plot for burial of ashes.  We also have dedicated scattering areas.

My loved one was buried elsewhere, can I have a memorial at the natural burial ground?  – Yes we have memorial woodland areas at each natural burial ground.  You may also have a plaque if you wish.

Can I leave instructions for my wish to have a natural burial? – Yes, we can help you with this.  Planning in advance provides peace of mind for those left behind and ensures that the service is exactly as you wish.  Please contact us if you require any advice or support.

Are environmentally friendly coffins expensive and are there many options? – Most funeral directors now have an extensive selection of coffins suitable for natural burial.  Cardboard, Bamboo, Wicker, Banana and Pandanus are just some of the options available.  Cardboard and Bamboo coffins and caskets are in the main a similar cost to standard traditional coffins.  Some of the hand woven Wicker coffins can be more expensive, this is due to the time and materials used to craft.  If you are having trouble sourcing a coffin or casket, or require advice, please don’t hesitate to contact us.

Hopefully the above may answer some of the questions you may have.  There is also further information and an FAQ sheet on our website.  You can also phone or email us at any time.

We believe passionately about caring for the environment and the bereaved.  Helping you to make the right decisions is an extremely important aspect of this.

 

Natural Burial Locations

Prestwold
Scraptoft
Wrottesley Park