The pandemic may have passed, but unattended funerals remain popular

“It’s an early morning funeral, between 8am and 08:30am,” said funeral director Nicola Davey of the family-run Arthur E Davey.

“The only people in attendance are the funeral director and the crew,” added Nicola, who is the third generation of Daveys to work in the family business. Next March Nicola will mark a decade since she passed her diploma in funeral arranging and administration, having first joined the business in 2003.

Nicola Davey (Image: Arthur E Davey) They are popular with people who don’t want to create a fuss and want to make things both as stress free for the family as possible, and also leave less of a financial burden

“The first part is self-explanatory; there are no mourners in attendance; just the funeral director and crew.

“As there are no mourners, subsequently no words are spoken, no favourite pieces of music are played. They also take place first thing in the morning.”

No attendance funerals are popular with people who don’t want a fancy funeral or too much of a fuss and are looking to keep things simple for family and friends

(Image: Arthur E Davey) “Because of various national TV advertising campaigns, it is wrongly assumed that a local funeral director can’t organise a unattendance funeral, but that is not the case, and at Arthur E Davey we have a wealth of experience in delivering to our clients the funeral that best suits them.

“Even though a funeral might not have anyone other than the funeral director and team in attendance, we still ensure a dignified funeral, with the final journey by hearse to the local crematorium.”

Nicola has also noticed a trend whereby people who have originally organised a more elaborate funeral opting to change to an unattended ceremony.

“People then put more emphasis on the wake, which can take place on a day, such as the weekend, which is more accessible to people, especially as the vast majority of funerals take place during the week and not everyone can attend the funeral or the wake.”

Arthur Davey (Image: Arthur E Davey) The original business opened in Nailsea in 1920, with Arthur E Davey putting his name above the door in the 1950s, and the Davey family have been running the business ever since.

Following Arthur’s death in 1985, his sons Tony and Colin took over the running of the business overseeing an expansion which included developing a purpose-built premises.

From unattended funerals to more elaborate send offs or to explore a prepaid funeral, contact Arthur E Davey on:

Tel: 01275 852307

Website: aedavey.co.uk

Address: 82 Silver Street, Nailsea, Bristol, BS48 2DS