Co-op Funeral Directors – a part of Chelmsford Star Co-operative

People hereabouts tend to favour a formal traditional funeral, and this is something that Craig and his staff do extremely well. They dress up smartly in uniforms trimmed with blue, wearing blue ties and cravats. They run a modern fleet of spotlessly maintained Jaguars.

Perhaps you don’t want a traditional funeral, or perhaps you’d like a traditional funeral with a few personalised touches. We found that Craig is very aware of, and sensitive to, the changing needs of the people he serves and we were really pleased by the way in which he gladly accommodates those needs. So if you want family members to walk in front of the hearse, Craig will happily take a back seat. If you want to carry the coffin, no problem. If you want to lower the coffin into the grave, no problem. They’ll be there for you to make sure you do it safely!

If you want a less formal funeral, or something more alternative, talk it over with them. They’ll do their best to get it right for you.

The Chelmsford Star team pay the greatest attention to detail. As a local funeral celebrant Chris Cornell told us, what marks them out is that “they go the extra mile to get things just right”. For this, all credit must go to the head of funerals, Craig, a born funeral director if ever we saw one. He lives and breathes his job, and he inspires the highest standards in everyone who works here. Everyone here is focussed on getting it just right for you.

Because it is a part of its local co-operative, Co-op Funeral Directors is extremely well-integrated with its community and, as a social enterprise, can draw on the strength and support of its parent body in delivering social value.  It also benefits from the critical oversight of its parent body, and this stimulates its very high standards. Its holistic support of the bereaved makes it very much more than just a business. Its people make it exceptional.

• Your first call will be answered, during office hours, by the person in the branch you have chosen. If you ring at night, your call will be answered by Craig or Mark or Corinne.
•  Home Visits – Very happy to make arrangements with you either at the funeral home or at your own home.
•  Embalming – Not as a matter of course. If it would be, in their opinion, beneficial or necessary, they will discuss it with you sensitively and carefully.
•  Family Participation – If you want to carry the coffin, they’ll show you how. If you’d like to come in and wash and dress the person who has died, they’ll be there for you. If you’d just like to come in do their hair, that’s absolutely no problem. They believe in empowering you to do what you want and they help you in any way they can.
•  Same sex person to wash and dress? – Yes, if you want. No problem. Just ask.
•  Ethnic Specialism – The staff are all trained and experienced in arranging funerals for people of different faiths and funeral traditions.
•  Local Celebrants – Excellent local celebrants to choose from if you do not want a religious minister.
•  Home arranged funerals – If you would like the person who has died to stay at home until the day of the funeral, they will willingly work with you to achieve this.
•  Website – Useful info well set out.
•  Client Support – After the funeral, call in anytime for a cuppa – they’ll always be pleased to see you. There are 4 bereavement support groups, all of them thriving and vibrant.
•  Money matters – Price-wise, mid-range. You can find cheaper in this area but service values here are of the highest: they look after you very well. If you are a member of Chelmsford Star, you get your share of the profit. If you are having to be careful with your budget, their Simple Funeral is affordable and offers more options than you tend to find at other funeral directors. If money is a problem, do be upfront about it and they will help you to find any grants to which you are entitled. If you want to plan your funeral in advance, they sell their own funeral plan and the money is held in trust by Chelmsford Star Co-operative.
• Added value — They offer a good range of products in which to keep some or all of the cremation ashes, from jewellery through keepsakes to urns. They hold a remembrance gathering every Christmastime. They’ll offer you a book of poetry from which you can choose funeral readings — and a very nice bookmark with a poem written by a local poet.
• Parking – At Broomfield, round the back in Beehive Lane, or in the Beehive pub car park opposite. At Danbury, park outside or by the church on the green. At Ingatestone, park round the back. At Writtle, park where you can. At Braintree, there’s ample parking outside. At Dunmow, park in the pay-and-display and Clare will reimburse your fee.

Highly professional and anything but slick and soulless. A regular winner of customer awards and an Investor in People. An extremely well-run business staffed by lovely people who are kind and open-minded, and who will work hard to enable you to arrange exactly the funeral you want. No package funerals here!

Any decisions you take on engaging the services of a funeral director should be based on your views and research. You should not rely solely upon the views and opinions offered by us.