Full Circle Funerals Ilkley

Sarah Jones and David Billington are the business partners who founded Full Circle Funerals. Although, as their website says, Sarah and Dave are personal, professional and compassionate people first and funeral directors second.

Full Circle Funerals is quite unlike any other funeral director business in the area. This is immediately apparent to anyone driving past any of their premises in Guiseley, Bramley, Harrogate and Halifax – they look more like a classy interior design showrooms than funeral director premises, with large windows, warm and natural decor and a fresh, modern feel. The website is similarly bright and attractive in design and the whole look of the company reflects the intelligent and thoughtful approach that this young business is bringing to a traditionally staid and somber service.

Sarah and Dave are supported by a small, close-knit team and together they have created a completely different type of funeral business serving families of Leeds, Bradford, Harrogate and Skipton and the surrounding areas. There are no assumptions here, nor acceptance of what ‘should’ be done when it comes to a funeral; the people at Full Circle Funerals are totally flexible and committed to giving clients as much support and involvement as each family wants or needs. They are really keen to show families the range of ideas, suggestions, products and styles that are available to help each client make the decisions that are right for them.

Completely transparent in pricing, with an online estimator to help you work out what the final costs might be depending on your choices, the philosophy at Full Circle is simple. Clear information, guidance where you need it and as much emotional or practical support as you want. You can expect to be treated like an intelligent adult, and whichever team member you meet will listen closely to what you need from them without making any suppositions. The Full Circle philosophy is to start with a blank canvas each time, and not to have any expectations about what is ‘the norm’, or what might be right for any client or their family. They believe strongly that genuine engagement in funeral planning supports a more positive grieving process and they have the communication skills and confidence to support people to achieve this.

Sarah and Dave met when they were both working with adults with learning difficulties. Sarah had trained and worked as a doctor before moving into adult social care, and Dave had previously lived and worked in America supporting underprivileged children to access outdoor youth programmes. Their wide experience of the world is evident in their determination to breathe fresh life into the way that we deal with the subject of death, something so often hidden away behind the blinds of a traditional funeral director’s premises, or cloaked in the processional ‘otherness’ of a passing funeral cortege.

Sarah in particular is passionate about re-designing the dialogue our society has about dying and death. She believes ardently that we would all benefit from speaking more openly about it, and her decision to move into providing an undertaking service was very much motivated by a desire to offer families the time, choices and support to create meaningful funerals.

Away from work, Sarah is a mother to two children, and she loves walking, running and cycling with her husband and family. She loves baking and cooking and making things, and clearly has a creative eye – the attractive décor of all of Full Circle Funerals’ premises has Sarah’s stamp all over it. “I love a bit of duck egg blue,” she says.

Dave spent some time working alongside another funeral director locally and is also a trained civil celebrant. He and his fiancée enjoy exploring the local countryside with their golden Labrador, Wilson, who is also part of the Full Circle Funerals team.

Both Dave and Sarah have a great deal of experience of working with people from their previous occupations, and bring many skills to their venture, including managing difficult communication and public speaking abilities.

Full Circle has two service in the Leeds areas (Guiseley and Bramley) from which they can support people from across Leeds, Bradford and Wharfedale.  Nicola and David are the funeral directors at the service in Bramley and they are supported by the wider Full Circle team.  Full Circle hosts monthly free webinars and you might find their funeral arranging guide “Funerals Your Way – A Person Centred Approaching to Arranging a Funeral” helpful (available from Amazon and your local book store)