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The Medical Examiner Service was set up to improve the death certification process.
The aim of the reform is to put bereaved families at the centre of the scrutiny and the next of kin are given an opportunity to raise concerns (therefore strengthening safeguards for the public).
You will normally need to register the death within 5 days.
A booked appointment with the registrar is usually required, but a death can also be registered by post. To register a death, you will need the Death Certificate and various documents confirming the identity and details of the deceased individual.
A service who will contact all government and local council departments to notify them of a death, for example council offices, libraries, blue badge, electoral service, housing departments, passport office, pension & DVLA.
A burial or cremation can only take place after the death’s registered. There are many things to consider when arranging a funeral. Most people use a funeral director, though you can arrange a funeral yourself.
Funeral Advice: National Association of Funeral Directors
Every bereavement is different and there are different processes dependent on your circumstances.
Facebook: @NationalBereavementService
Telephone: 0800 0246 121
Website: www.nationalbereavementservice.org
Email: info@thenbs.org
Cruse Bereavement Care is the leading national charity providing bereavement support services in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. They offer support, advice and information to children, young people and adults when someone dies and work to enhance society's care of bereaved people.
Twitter: @CruseCare
Facebook: @crusebereavementcare
Telephone: 0844 800 9104
Website: www.cruse.org.uk
Email: southkent@cruse.org.uk
Kent Bereavement Advice Service's (KBAS) and helpline are available, free of charge, for anyone affected by the death of someone significant to them, whether the death occurred in Kent or the person who died lived in Kent or the bereaved person lives in Kent. People planning for the end of their own lives or expecting bereavement are welcome to call, as are professionals and volunteers who support people around the time of death.
Telephone: 0800 258 5944
Website: https://www.bereavementadvice.org/
Email: info@kbas.org.uk
When someone dies by suicide, it reaches out across the community like ripples on a pond. Families and friends are devastated – and many more people are touched. You do not have to have had a family or personal relationship – the loss of an acquaintance, colleague, client or even a stranger can affect you. There are service that specialise in suicide bereavement support: