Public health funerals

The council has a duty to carry out burials or cremations in exceptional circumstances, usually when no suitable arrangements are being made.

Where possible, the costs of this are recovered from the estate of the deceased.

Frequently asked questions

Public Health Funerals are the subject of frequent Freedom of Information requests, and the answers to the most commonly asked questions are as follows:

• The council does not use solicitors, probate specialists or genealogical companies to trace relatives. Council officers carry out this function when required
• The council does not have a contract with a designated funeral director
• Placing notices in newspapers would be arranged by the funeral director
• None of these funerals have required a formal notification to the Duchy of Lancaster
• None of these funerals have resulted in notification to the Land Registry, as none of the estates have included land or property
• Due to the infrequent nature of these funerals no individual officer is designated for dealing with these matters

Public health funerals the council has carried out

Since January 2010 the Council has carried out the following Public Health Funerals:

Name: Stuart Wylde
Date & place of birth: 5.6.86 Davyhulme,
Date & place of death: 27.2.23 St Catherine's Hospice Lostock Hall
Relatives Traced? Yes
Value of estate: approx. £200
Cost of funeral: £2,141

Name: Frank Simpson
Date & place of birth: 19.9.35 Preston,
Date & place of death: 31.3.22 Walton House Nursing
Relatives Traced? Yes
Value of estate: approx. £7000
Cost of funeral: £3,000

Name: Keith David Richardson
Date & place of birth: 19.01.1948, Withington, Manchester
Date & place of death: 24.09.2020, Bamber Bridge
Relatives traced? Yes
Value of estate: £49,739.31
Cost of funeral: £1,295

Name: Barrie Knowles
Date & place of birth: 19.12.1944, Preston
Date & place of death: 09.10.2020, Lostock Hall
Relatives traced? Yes
Value of estate: £0
Cost of funeral: £1,600

Name: Margaret Cunningham
Date & place of birth: 02.12.1934
Date & place of death: 25.04.2020 New Longton
Relatives traced? No
Value of estate: £0
Cost of funeral: £1,295

Name: Robert Turner
Date & place of birth: 31.05.1968 Leyland
Date & place of death: 11.04.2020 Lostock Hall
Relatives traced? Yes
Value of estate: £0
Cost of funeral: £1,295

Name: Anne Kalendar
Date & place of birth: 05.02.1946 Preston
Date & place of death: 14.08.2019 Lostock Hall
Relatives traced? No
Value of estate: Not determined
Cost of funeral £1,453.52

Name: Raiz Ahmad
Date & place of birth: 15.09.1951 Pakistan
Date & place of death: 21.05.2019 Lostock Hall
Relatives traced? No
Value of estate: Not determined
Cost of funeral: £1,553.32

Name: Marjorie Rigby
Date & place of birth: 14.3.1925 Liverpool
Date & place of death: 21.1.2018 Lostock Hall
Relatives traced? Yes
Value of estate: £2.29
Cost of funeral: £1,400

Name: Thomas Carter
Date & place of birth: 18.11.1937 Preston
Date & place of death: 6.9.2017 Penwortham
Relatives traced? Yes
Value of estate: £500
Cost of funeral: £1,680

Name: Joseph Ball
Date & place of birth: 3.2.1951 Doncaster
Date & place of death: 23.5.2017 Leyland
Relatives traced? Yes
Value of estate: >£1,750
Cost of funeral: £1,750

Name: James E. Mannion
Date & place of birth: 11.2.1940 Preston
Date & place of death: 12.4.2017 Lostock Hall
Relatives traced? No
Value of estate: £0
Cost of funeral: £1,400

Name: Leslie Kiss
Date & place of birth: 17.4.1965 Preston
Date & place of death: 2.4.2013 Penwortham
Relatives traced? Yes
Value of estate: £0
Cost of funeral: £620

Name: Aurelija Brazaityte
Date & place of birth: 12.3.1966 Vilnius, Lithuania
Date & place of death: 7.2.2013 Bamber Bridge
Relatives traced? No
Value of estate: £849
Cost of funeral £1,119

Name: Guy Blackburn
Date & place of birth: Not recorded
Date & place of death: Funeral - 28.7.2011
Relatives traced? Yes
Value of estate: £0
Cost of funeral £527.49

Name: David Michael Jermy
Date & place of birth: 29.4.1942 Attleborough, Norfolk
Date & place of death: 21.4.2010 Penwortham
Relatives traced? Yes
Value of estate: £298.36
Cost of funeral: £851.89