Our home funeral support for those who want a helping hand in Minehead, Taunton & across Somerset & Devon with Lady Funeral Director Amanda-Louise

Helping You Have Your Loved One at Home Until the Funeral

We understand you may wish to look after the person who has died at home and planning the funeral yourself, we can support you to do this.

Amanda-Louise Funeral Services - Somerset's female led funeral director

Offering a more compassionate and alternative home funeral service

Many people do not realise that you can keep a loved one at home after they have died, caring for them right up to their funeral, and there are many positive reasons for those caring for their loved one in this way. Should the decision be right for you not to entrust your loved one into our care as our guest, we can still support you at home with any practical help or advice that you may want or need from us including equipment needed, how to arrange a funeral, as well as providing a coffin and transport options to the burial or cremation, if thats helpful to you.  See below what's included in this choice of service:

Can't find what you are looking for?

Whether you want to talk through our funeral services or need help choosing from our range of funeral products. Get in touch with us today.

Funerals at Home

PERSONAL MESSAGE TO YOU FROM AMANDA-LOUISE

  • “I built my independent family run funeral business on kindness and experience with our desire to provide you with every aspect for you to arrange a funeral that reflects how you wish to say goodbye. So, I offer choice,support and value and am not rigid in our approach, so you only pay for what you want and need.Not all funerals are the same and no two funeral directors are the same either. Some funeral directors charge additionally for many aspects of the funeral elements. We care about the living and the departed and know how daunting it can be to arrange a funeral. So, with my heartfelt offering, below is my 10 point gift to support you in your important life decisions, warmly Amanda-Louise”

  • 1.   Our Pledge – your loved one remains in our local facilities

  • 2.   Our Compliments No Charge (if desired) - Collecting clothing in the local area, our flower placed on coffin if desired as sentimental touch, and delivery of ashes in the local area

  • 3.   'Our Compliments No Charge - A Funeral Notice' online service

  • 4.   The ability - for Amanda-Louise Funeral Director to personally come out to your home locally to discuss arrangements in detail

  • 5.   Our Compliments No Charge - Choice is very important to us, so you have the option for your gentle funeral ceremony to be conducted by Amanda-Louise (celebrant capacity - subject to availability)

  • 6.   Our Pledge Our Heart is Local – we prefer to use only local crematoriums or cemeteries (and not take you out of our region)

  • 7.   Our Compliments No Charge - We believe that arranging a meaningful funeral can be a healing experience to support your grief journey. Amanda-Louise will personally support you and guide you through the practical aspects and offer to help you create a fitting ceremony and celebration of life. Our in-house trained bereavement support for adults and children, and open invitations to join us for our bereavement coffee sessions after the funeral enabling a comfortable space and shared experiences

  • 8.   Our Partnerships - Access to specialist bereavement counselling for those needing therapeutic structured support

  • 9.   Our Pledge for the Planet – we dedicate towards planting a tree in memory of your loved one and our unique way to benefit our environment for future generations by offering a variety of eco-friendly funeral procedures, arrangements, and products too

  • 10.   Our Pledge to Ease the Burden – we offer to provide everything you may want or need for a funeral, memorial or celebration of life under our one roof helping to remove some of the stress from your shoulders. From floristry, vehicles, orders of service and ceremony accessories, catering to venue provision and memorabilia and keepsakes

Funeral Total Costings Example

Our Professional charges (professional guidance and support, supplying hearse or transport with staff) typically £750 Includes:

  • Our advice and practical support for you to arrange a funeral yourself, including advice on how to care for the person who has died in your own home until the funeral
  • Our help with conveying the coffin you have purchased to the local funeral (using our hearse or suitable vehicle with our driver) or us collecting the person from where they have died locally and return them to your local home
  • Consultation on creative elements you can contribute yourself, or you want our support with
  • Support and guidance to carry the coffin yourself (if permitted by the cemetery or crematorium)
  • Regular contact by Email, Phone, Teams or Zoom

You will need to add on cost of cremation or burial, coffin, doctor's certificate

Example Funeral Plan & Extras

The Breakdown Costs

Transparency is ever so important to us at Amanda-Louise Funeral Services, especially when it comes to pricing. To find out how much you could expect to spend to achieve the funeral that’s right for you see below. We will provide you with a personalised quotation once we have spoken for your consideration.

Essential Costs

Our Professional Services for support - £750

Includes:

  • Our advice and practical support for you to arrange a funeral yourself, including advice on how to care for the person who has died in your own home until the funeral
  • Our help with conveying the coffin you have purchased to the local funeral (using our hearse or suitable vehicle with our driver) or us collecting the person from where they have died locally and return them to your local home
  • Consultation on creative elements you can contribute yourself, or you want our support with
  • Support and guidance to carry the coffin yourself (if permitted by the cemetery or crematorium)
  • Regular contact by Email, Phone, Teams or Zoom 

Cremations

Third Party Costs/Disbursements – Cremation Charges (correct at time of publishing) - These are for reference only

Priced Individual - There May Not Be a Charge for Children Under 18

Cremation with funeral ceremony time in their chapel available Mon-Fri 10-4pm

  • Taunton Crematorium £871
  • Sedgemoor(Bridgewater) £989  
  • East Devon (Exeter) £925
  • Exeter & Devon£850
  • North Devon (Barnstaple) £750
  • Mendip (Wells) £936
  • Yeovil£825

Cremation without time for service in Chapel (but chance to spend 10 minutes in chapel with your own goodbye)  available Mon-Fri 9-930am

  • Taunton Crematorium £743  
  • Sedgemoor(Bridgewater) £819
  • East Devon (Exeter) £725
  • Exeter & Devon £675

Cremation Only (direct no mournersor ceremony/chapel time)

  • Taunton Crematorium £531  
  • Sedgemoor(Bridgewater) £524
  • East Devon (Exeter) £550
  • Exeter & Devon £499

Available Mon-Fri before 9am (or we can arrange to use out of area crematorium for a package lower cost price)

If Cremation :Third Party Costs/Disbursements – Drs Fees

£82 Doctor’s fee for 1 x cremation certificate - n/a if coroner involved in cremation

Burials

Priced Individually - There May Not Be a Charge for Children Under 18

  • Typical Church Burial – to include cost of gravediggers, graveside service, burial fee, vergers, organist, church costs - example £1525

Natural Woodland Burial Sites

  • Fevin Nature Reserve, Somerton– from£1090 or Burial of Ashes from £50
  • Crossways, Exeter – from £1400 or Burial of Ashes from £550
  • Hackpen, Cullompton – £1125 or Burial Of Ashes from £200
  • Bath Meadow – from £1505 or Burial of Ashes from £660

Burial at Sea – Licence fee + boat fee – price on request

Possible Costs
Optional Costs

We have a range of products and services that may be options you would like to add to your package

  • Your choice of our urns and scatter tubes for cremated ashes from £30
  • Delivery of ashes back to you - price dependent upon address
  • Your choice of memorabilia and keepsakes - prices vary
  • Additional events such as celebration of life event , where mourners can hold their own goodbye, can include catered hospitality and venue, or ceremonies (such as burial or scattering of ashes)
  • Bespoke assistance - supplementary charge for arranging a funeral of particularly complexity or unusual details £350.00 -this should not apply to direct services

We can supply everything that you may want or need for a funeral or event. For further ideas please see out catalogue categories

Third Party Costs

Professional Services

Third Party Costs/Disbursements – Professional Embalmer

Priced on Request

We do not routinely embalm, but if you request this, we can obtain a price

Third Party Costs/Disbursements – Professional Ceremony Leader (Minister, Celebrant or Humanist)

Priced on Request (typically from £200-£350) -some may not charge for children under 18

If you do not want to conduct the funeral ceremony yourself, you could use a professional. We know many talented professionals so just ask, or alternatively Amanda-Louise is a trained celebrant so can deliver a ceremony subject to availability.

Third Party Costs/Disbursements –Other Professionals

Prices on Request

Professional Funeral Photographer, Videographer, Interpreter/Translator, Sign Language Professional, Dove Release, Musicians/Singer, Bagpiper, Bulger etc

What to expect from us
The enduring strength of women

We care for you and your family

As your Lady Funeral Directors, Amanda-Louise can meet you in the comfort of your own home, or in our peaceful office, or via video call if you'd prefer. We will never tell you how 'things should be done', or rush you, but support you to understand and consider your choices, so that you can decide what is right for you and your family and friends.

We will listen to you, and can help you plan a funeral ceremony. We'll respect your personal beliefs, values and culture and ensure your requirements, and those of the person that has died, are reflected in the funeral. You may prefer a religious funeral, a more secular service or might want to include a number of different religious and spiritual perspectives within the same service.

We can help you to reflect on the life of the person who has died and enable you to create some positive memories to support you at a time when people can often feel sad and alone. We can support you to have a farewell that you desire - so we will support you to understand the wide range of options such as visual, musical, floral, donations, readings/poems for example, as well as organising venue and/or hospitality for your after funeral wake or reception, if you wish.

Importantly, we will be flexible to your needs and wishes and give you our time to help put your ideas into action. You can take as much control as you like. We are able to support families from across Somerset or Devon, are not regionally restricted, we can help you create an event at a time and place that is best for you.

Amanda-Louise Funeral Director, can also personally deliver a heartfelt celebrant led service on your behalf should you wish, or we can recommend other talented professional ceremony leaders including religious ministers, celebrants and humanists.

We work hard to support the wellbeing of every family we support (adults and children).We can also provide a wealth of practical bereavement information for adults and children, and we'll ensure the funeral is meaningful for you, which helps in coming to terms with loss too.

We care for the person who has died

In our care you have trusted us to look after your loved one and we take enormous pride in treating people with respect and dignity. From the very moment the person who has died comes into our care, to the moment they leave, we will treat them with compassion, kindness and consideration. We see this as part of the cycle of life

We reach out and support people from 15 to 50+ miles away from us, as we safely transfer the deceased into our facilities. We'll care for the person entrusted into our funeral home with compassion and dignity, and treat everyone as guests in our home. Or we can assist if you prefer the deceased to remain at home or liaise with a repatriation company for deaths abroad.

We provide a comprehensive range of coffins in different materials, including coffin accessories to suit all tastes. This is a very personal choice, so we happily talk about them or can show you the differences.

We can provide the ability for family to spend time with their loved one, and to change clothing if this is important to you. Plus you can be involved in as little or as much of their care as you desire. We will gently prepare them for their funeral following your wishes including hairstyles or makeup, and whilst we do not routinely embalm we can provide this if you desire. We’ll take great care of any person effects, and give them to you ,or they will remain with the person Plus we can arrange for your items to be placed in the coffin if you wish.

We can even support you to keep your loved one at home right up until their funeral if you wish.

On the day of the funeral

We understand that attention to detail is really important, from considering the way people enter the service to carefully calculating the journey time.

We can provide our professional pallbearers to convey the coffin. We can help you bear the coffin if that's important to you. We can arrange special routes to the funeral if you wish, or alternative hearses and limousines.

We can arrange to collect family from railway station or airport if helpful.

Some families prefer not to hold the funeral ceremony at a crematorium chapel or in church, so we can support you to have a service in a chosen hotel, hall or alternative venue that is meaningful to you.

Amanda-Louise will be by your side giving you that reassuring presence ensuring everything is going to plan smoothly, and we leave when you are ready for us to go. We can also provide attendance cards so you know who has attended the funeral ceremony service.

After the funeral

We remain connected should you need us. If we collected donations, we will provide you with audit trail so you know they have been forwarded to the relevant people, organisation or charity. We'll collect ashes if that's helpful & deliver them to you. We can arrange for you to scatter them or preserve them if you wish.

We will have spoken to you about the arrangements of the funeral flowers and carried out those wishes. And if required, we can organise graves and headstones to be put in place at a suitable time after a burial or ashes placed.

And we welcome you to stay in touch. Often our clients pop in to talk about how life is treating them, or to attend one of our coffee afternoons as life can be isolating at times following the loss of a loved one. Our kettle is always on, likely biscuits too. Rest assured, we will never stop caring - here for you whenever you need us, wherever you are.

Do you need more help?

"We all felt totally safe opening our hearts to Amanda-Louise and were so impressed in the skills and empathy she has to understand how we all felt."

funeral directors somerset

Funerals at Home

Our frequently asked questions to guide you

What To Do When Someone Dies At Home

A doctor will need to certify the death.  This can be the person’s registered GP or the Doctor on duty.  You may need to collect the Medical Certificate of Cause of Death (MCCD) from the GP’s surgery.

After someone has died at home, you can spend time with them, if you want to.  You may want to play music and light a candle.  There is no rush.  Whenever you are ready, you can call us on 07879-220046 and we will bring the person who has died into our care, once the death has been certified. Our staff are fully trained in order to handle this difficult event with care and respect. You are always welcome to visit our Chapel of Rest at a later date.

If the death was expected, the GP will provide a Medical Certificate of Cause of Death (MCCD) which you will need to register the death.

I'm so glad we met you Amanda, we all talk about how smoothly it flowed. I think your right Dad would of been proud of us all. Thank you for your services, Ian :)

Ian Mitcham

'Amanda-Louise is an amazing positive and kind lady who has gone above and beyond my expectations of a funeral director. Particularly as my husband chose a direct cremation (unattended) yet I was able to have a local, personalised cremation, with me making my own floral tribute along with other personalised touches, that I don't believe a large organisation (TV advertised) would be able to do for you . She gave me a lot of time, care and attention to detail, with practical and emotional support as well. I would highly recommend this caring respectful and professional funeral service.'

Carol Coutts

Thank you for your pack with Dad's service details. It was presented brilliantly and was great to read over. Thank you again for your touch on things. Unfortunately, you are someone I hope not to see again in the near future, but if I do, I know the ceremony is in the best of hands’

Dean W

'Amanda gave us as a family, the service we wanted and that my dad would have been very happy with and arranging to have him brought back to Northern Ireland with us and accompanying him on his final journey . Nothing was too much trouble for Amanda and she is a very kind and understanding lady.'

Rachelle Coggins

'Amanda Louise helped with all the practical details of organising my father's funeral. She really listened to what we wanted and helped us design a service that was a personal reflection of his personality and his relationships. She mixes great organisational skills, getting things done behind the scenes, with practical and emotional support. Amanda-Louise ensured everything ran smoothly and was always available for questions and support and her role of celebrant on the day played a big part in making the service something to reflect on with pride and fondness.'

Amanda M

‘I wanted to say how lovely the service was. I loved what you said, and it was just right for Dad. You were so professional, considerate, and caring and both me and Mum felt looked after.’

Heather H

Dear Amanda, our deepest appreciation and heartfelt thanks and gratitude go out to you for the lovely service you gave for our Mum/Sister and Nan Myra. Although a day of sorrow for all the family and friends, you helped the day pass with an air of smooth tranquillity and sincere friendship. thank you Amanda, Dawn and Carol

Dawn

‘I cannot praise Amanda enough. Clearly professional in her role she brought direction and comfort in equal measure, and yes, some humour to a very special Celebration of Life. A separate session with the young children attending gave them a role in the proceedings and an understanding of the meaning of the meeting. I recommend her services for any celebration, happy or sad.’

Dudley P

‘I just wanted to thank you for dad’s funeral. It was presented so beautifully and the personal letters to us all was a really thoughtful touch. I know Mum is grateful too, she thought you did a wonderful job celebrating Dad’s remarkable life. He truly was one of life’s funny and happy people. In addition, your support and gentle manner on the day of Dad’s funeral hasn’t gone unnoticed either. Thank you for introducing yourself to my son….and offering him some reassuring words as well as noticing the scarf he was wearing for his Grandad.’

Donna W

What a wonder lady, Amanda-louise was excellent at creating just the right service for my dear fathers funeral. She is sensitive, adaptable and has a lovely sense of humour. You will not regret using her. Sue x”

Sue Babey

'Finding a funeral director is not something I’ve ever wanted to do because the death of a loved one becomes VERY real. I searched around my local area and all I could see were ‘traditional’ websites with not a lot on them. Owning a website myself, I know how important it is to give as much detail as possible..Amanda-Louise has absolutely done this. Her website is welcoming and full of information. My initial in-person meeting with her was fantastic! Amanda-Louise made me feel so comfortable and her office is very calming and not ‘traditional’ in any way which I think is a great credit to her and her business. From beginning to the sad end, (and beyond!) Amanda-Louise has been with myself and my family through the whole process and no question or suggestion is any trouble. She goes above and beyond for her clients and I’m so incredibly happy we chose her to arrange everything. I wouldn’t recommend anyone else and although I don’t want to think about another death in my family..Amanda-Louise will be my ‘go to’ for any I will need in the future ❤️'

Calley Owen

‘A friend recommended Amanda-Louise…at my mother’s funeral. Like most people in my position, I found the prospect of organising not only a funeral but my own mother’s funeral during Covid19 times. But Amanda-Louise was absolutely amazing. She was so caring, compassionate, understanding and most of all friendly. She listened intently to the type of funeral service we required (I didn’t know there were so many options), made notes, asked questions to get to know not only us but my mother too – consequently offered suggestions. The result was amazing if you could say a funeral was perfect – this was genuinely it. I can’t put into words how grateful I am to Amanda – Louise’s professional and compassionate approach to a very emotional event. Whatever the event if I could employ Amanda-Louise again I would have no hesitation whatsoever.’

Julie

'I’ve met Amanda on two occasions two years in a row now for both my grandparents funeral. I can say our family felt in such great hands and so looked after by Amanda. She listened to what we’d like as a family as well as taking the time to get to know our loved ones we were saying goodbye to! Our family is forever grateful for her services and are so thankful to her.'

Abi Wong

Thank you Amanda for looking after my close friend and her partner’s funeral. You were so professional, caring and lovely from the moment we spoke on the phone to the day of the funeral. I knew they were in safe hands with you. Everything you did was what they wished for. We can not thank you enough. Sharon (Admin) Thomas Brothers Funeral Directors

Thomas Brothers Funeral Directors

‘Beautiful service for my late husband John. Amanda did him proud, she took the service with feeling and respect. Thank you Amanda.’‍

Pippa B

Dear Amanda, just a note to say a huge thank you for all your support and the wonderful service you conducted in honour of my Mum. I cant think of anyone better to conduct the service and Im so proud to call you my trusted friend, along with knowing it was Mum's choice to have you here today - she knew what you had supported with me in the past, and knows you always give sound advice. Thank you once again for everything, love Sharon x

Sharon Hilleard

‘You have been so helpful during this whole process and I would recommend you and your services to everyone’

Lynn M

'Amanda had the difficult job of creating a beautiful ceremony that brought together many different parts of our lost loved one’s life. She rung up and spoke to each sibling to get stories and details needed for the ceremony. I never felt more at ease knowing she was here for the funeral. What she came up with was beautiful and she treated my dad with the utmost respect and honour. She made a bad day manageable, and it was simply beautiful.'

Mrs P Potts

‘Amanda-Louise was from the outset very friendly, caring and thoughtful. Such a good service provided to us in our time of grief and the service was more than we than we could have expected. I feel like I have known her for years and that if I ever need to talk she will be there for me.’

Lesley W

'Amanda-Louise is a wonderful person, who helped us say good bye to our Dad in a personalised and positive way, for which we will be forever grateful.'

Anna Lienka

Dear Amanda-Louise, I am writing this card to say a HUGE thank you for all your help and expertise, that I found so helpful while organising my son's funeral service. It was so comforting to have you by my side along that path, and it was wonderful having you conduct the service on the day. You were so calm and professional, and gave me the strength to get through it. I would not have the slightest hesitation in recommending you and your services. thank you! Warmest regards Sally

Sally Priddy

'At a time when as a family we were in the depths of sorrow at our loss Amanda - Louise arrived. It was as if the weight of trying to make sure that my husband’s life was remembered and honoured was completely understood by Amanda and we all relaxed. Our memories were brought to life in the service and I found it such a comfort. We all felt totally safe opening our hearts to her and were so impressed in the skills she has and empathy she has to understand how we all felt.'

Claire W

"Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat."

Name Surname

Position, Company name

"Dedicated to giving you the funeral you deserve & want"

A message from Amanda-Louise

"With my vision on providing wrap-around-care from start to finish. Our team are here to help you with every aspect of planning and organising your funeral needs from the preparation of the body to events and memorial services, I will be with you every step of the way"