Co-op Funeralcare, Hemsworth

5 Alan Balmforth 19th Jun 2023

So kind, lovely people at a sad time.

1 Josie Blackham 21st Feb 2023

Would not recommend Cooperative Funeral Care at Hemsworth.

We as a family are disappointed with our experiences and your handling and management of the funeral of my late father.

When a loved one dies it is a devastating experience for those left behind leaving us feeling empty, helpless, heartbroken and many other emotions coming to the fore. It’s not the time to be making rational important decisions such as all that is involved in organising a funeral to celebrate and befitting the life of a loved one. That is where the role of funeral directors is vital to most people by taking the strain to sympathetically and respectfully guide, advise and support them through this very traumatic time.

My father passed away 2nd January 2023 and I along with my mother, and my family we met with Alan at your Funeral care branch in Hemsworth. Alan is actually based at your Barnsley branch but due to sickness issues at the Hemsworth branch he was covering for them.
We chose a coffin and Alan advised us that it would take about a week to be made, however he did not tell us that there would be a further delay due to the company being on strike, surely you have contingencies in place if your third-party suppliers can’t deliver. He also often made us aware that somethings e.g. flowers, headstones etc, could be done easier, more personal to our requirements and probably cheaper outside of Co-op Funeral care. Not sure if this is true or due to the lack of staff problems at Hemsworth and therefore increasing the workload at other branches.

Having a pre-payment plan in place we were aware of what is and what’s not included, we therefore decided to go to our own florist supporting local business. Alan also advised us that the first available date for the funeral was the 9th February, over 5 weeks later. With this in mind and as we wanted to see our father one last time we opted to have his body embalmed, another additional cost.

Alan appeared sincere and compassionate and went through the various options and requirements, we realise this is his job, but we left feeling that we were not his priority. Alan did make a home visit to my mother's to discuss the funeral but other than that there was no further contact with him until the day of the funeral, all other dealings were to be through the Hemsworth branch.

Alan provided us with some paperwork we needed to complete however upon trying to return it you we found that the Hemsworth branch was closed even though it was in your stated opening hours. This was also the case when our florist had cause to visit your branch on two occasions to find out some specific details as did Father David Nicholson from St Johns Church Cudworth, he reported the closure to the Barnsley branch.

When discussing songs/hymns/music etc we were told that this was dealt with by the church as you only deal with this when the funeral service is at a crematorium. We therefore had to make arrangements and get this done privately causing us more stress and upset.

When the Co-op provided us with the draft of the Order of Service book songs/hymns and the images of David we had provided were all missing, more upset. A draft is there to correct minor errors and is acceptable but not when there are omissions such as this.
We had to contact you on numerous occasions for updates on progress and as to when my father would be ready for family to be able to view him. We were told he’s in Pontefract, he’s in Leeds, he’s being embalmed. Finally, 2 days before the funeral (over a month after his passing) we were told he was now in Hemsworth but wasn’t fit for viewing due to the delay in getting the coffin. More heartbreak, stress and upset for us.

You knew the timescale and with that in mind we had decided to have my father embalmed at the outset, you were also aware of the problems with your supplier. It was your responsibility to ensure that the body was stored and prepared appropriately especially knowing that we wanted to view and say a final goodbye

We did visit Hemsworth and were shown into a ‘room’ by a woman who showed no remorse or empathy. There was no music, no candles, no calming atmosphere with the closed coffin pushed into a corner on an uncovered blue hospital type trolley. It left us questioning is he wearing the clothes we provided, has he been shaved and groomed, have our mementos and tokens been put in the coffin, it was not a calm reassuring place to be in.

A funeral and how people react to them is different from person to person, this was meant to be a special day planned to celebrate the life of a special man. You say that you’ll look after the deceased person with care, dignity and respect from the moment you bring them into your care until the day of the funeral. You promised to support and help create a unique funeral ceremony tailored to our own requirements and arrangement of all services, documentation and third parties with care, respect, clarity and reassurance, and take great pride in offering a professional, caring and sensitive service.

However, after our experience we feel heartbroken, distressed, disappointed and let down by the service you provided and that you did not live up to our expectations nor meet your own standards of delivery and performance.

5 Jean Johnson 6th Feb 2023

Very good throuĝout .

5 Lisa Mccourt 6th Feb 2023

Such a sad time was made easier to manage thanks to the help and support of the team involved in my father’s funeral. Special thanks to Sam and Louise. 

5 David Tetlow 9th Jan 2023

Very supportive at a difficult time. Thank you.

5 Dave Lloyd 5th Dec 2022

From the time They Collected my Mum, to her Burial. We felt looked after. Nothing else I can add really.!

5 Kathy Wilson 28th Nov 2022

Very difficult job but Ron and the team especially the female member sorry I can’t remember her name, we’re helpful, compassionate and knowledgable. I felt that nothing was too much trouble. They made the funeral run as smoothly as it could

5 Tracey Akeroyd 14th Nov 2022

All arrangements were dealt with in  a gentle and supportive way and we as a family were pleased comforted  by the service received.

5 Mark Barlow 7th Nov 2022

Absolutely Fantastic From start to finish Highly Recommend Coop Funeral care Sam & Paul for taking care of our father and giving him the best whilst he was in your care Thank You so much  

5 Maria Napier 31st Oct 2022

Very helpful, informative and thoughtful

5 Linda Cartwright 21st Sep 2022

Very efficient service whilst being kind, sensitive, helpful and considerate.

5 Danielle Higgins 5th Sep 2022

Everyone we encountered at Co Op were brilliant. Although it was the most difficult time for us, the staff couldn't do enough for us. Leanne you were excellent, caring, considerate and kind. Also a special thanks to Sam and Nicola.

5 Daniel Evans 8th Aug 2022

Very respectful, very helpful at such a difficult time

5 Wendy Ford 1st Aug 2022

My mum's funeral went very smoothly and everything went to plan .I was very pleased with all the staff that assisted on the day and the staff who provided assistance leading up to the funeral day . Thank you

5 Anne-Louise Fletcher 28th Jun 2022

The whole situation was handle with respect and care. I couldn't have asked for more. Nothing was too much trouble and it was the send off he desrved. Thank you so much.

5 Graham Lees 24th Jun 2022

everything went smoothly and to plan

5 Jayne Ferguson 6th Jun 2022

Professional, empathetic and could not be more helpful. Thank you ladies

4 Valentina Chechetkina 17th May 2022

Very good service, very helpful thanks

5 Sally Davis 12th Apr 2022

My dads funeral was just as we wanted it. Ron the funeral director was so kind and professional and went above and beyond to make the day as easy as possible for us. 

5 Ann Swaby 28th Mar 2022

We would like to thank leanne and Nick and others who was involved in my mothers funeral arrangements for there outstanding service from statt to finish once again thanyou .

5 Karen Boycott 28th Mar 2022

Excellent service throughout the funeral would definitely use your service again.

5 Sharon Hall 15th Feb 2022

I would just like to say how organised and how well you arranged everything from start to finish we really can't thank you enough. You helped make a terrible time a lot easier for us.

Thank you from the bottom of hearts we really appreciated everything you did.

5 Elizabeth Rawson 14th Feb 2022

Very professional and sympathetic service throughout.

5 Tracy Richardson 7th Feb 2022

Fantastic  would definitely use co-op  funeral directors again in the future 

5 Kirsty Cooper 23rd Jan 2022

I was extremely pleased with the funeral of my sister. They were swift in response to any queries, dealt with everything sensitively. From the moment I contacted them to discuss arrangements, I knew I was in safe hands. Everyone I spoke to at the branch was compassionate & completely professional, taking the time to guide me by explaining the processes. Nothing was too much trouble. A huge thank you to Nichola who made sure everything ran smoothly on the day, it was beautiful!