Arranging a burial

A funeral can usually only take place after you have registered the death. Most people use a funeral director to help them arrange the funeral, but you can arrange the funeral yourself.

We can only discuss the details of the burial and service with the funeral director and the person arranging the funeral.

To arrange a burial and service at Chelmsford Cemetery, you need to complete all of the relevant paperwork, depending on the type of service you choose.

Your funeral director will be able to fill in the paperwork with you.

The paperwork includes:

a notice of interment
the Service Details (for a burial with chapel)
the Music and Hymns Form (for a burial with chapel)

The Cemetery is made up of traditional and lawn burial plots.

New burial plots are available in the lawn section.

When you purchase a grave, you will be acquiring the exclusive right to burial for that grave.

A lawn grave includes a headstone and can have a mini kerb set immediately in front of the headstone. The remaining area is grassed over, this must be kept clear at all times.

A traditional grave has a headstone and full kerb set that forms an edging with the grave area.

Burial services can take place at Chelmsford Cemetery or at a church. If the service is at a church, you will proceed to the graveside when you arrive at the Cemetery.

Services at Chelmsford Crematorium can be religious, non-religious or humanist, or you may choose not to have a service at all. You can check our fees and charges for the cost of each service.

Services are held in one of two chapels. The North Chapel has 30 seats, or the South Chapel which has 100 seats.

There is standing room in the Foyer for:

8 people in the North Chapel
25 people in the South Chapel

You can check the availability of the chapels by looking at the calendar of services. You will also need to check the availability of your funeral director.

Your funeral director will guide you through options for the service, including choosing music and visual tributes, and broadcasting and recording the service. They will also tell you the timescales for ordering these options.

We can play recorded music in both chapels using the Obitus Music System. You can view your choices on a library of available tracks online (you will need the password of "chelmsford").

If your choice is not already in the library, your funeral director can request commercially available music to be added. You can also ask for a recording you have personally created to be added, such as a song or reading.

Additionally, both chapels have an electric organ. Your funeral director will need to provide the organist for your service.

You can choose to pay an additional fee to show:

a single photo
a slideshow of up to 25 photos
a professional video-style photo tribute of up to 25 photos
a video you have supplied

If you want more than 25 photos, you will need to pay extra for them, in batches of 25. You must submit all content at least two days before the funeral.

We can broadcast a funeral service online using the Obitus System. You can speak to your funeral director and request this, and they will be able to arrange this for you.

There is a single camera placed discreetly at the back of each chapel, which we can use to:

webcast the service live
webcast the service live and send as a download (up to 28 days afterwards)
record the service onto DVD, Blu-ray or USB

If you are webcasting the service, your funeral director will provide login details for your viewers. You can also view the broadcast for up to 28 days afterwards, although it can take up to two working days to become available.

You will have to pay an additional fee to arrange webcasting and recording.

After the service, you will proceed to the graveside for burial.

You can arrange a funeral yourself, but you will have to carry out the duties that funeral directors perform. This includes storing and transporting the body, and completing the paperwork.

If you want to arrange a funeral yourself, you should contact us for advice.