Generations of Care – Article from the Stratford Herald

Tracing our local heritage, our business has been in succeeding ownership for over 165 years. With the last 60 years being looked after by three generations of the Locke family who have served the South Warwickshire community since Raymond started his apprenticeship in 1940 through to Colin and George, who run the business today. They are supported by their dedicated team, all possessing a wealth of local knowledge, high professional standards, care and attention to detail.

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Who are R Locke & Son?

We are independent funeral directors, family-run and owned, with offices in Brailes, Kineton and Wellesbourne, serving the local communities and surrounding areas of South Warwickshire. We are members of SAIF, The National Society of Allied and Independent Funeral Directors. As a SAIF member, you can be assured of a compassionate, professional approach underpinned by an industry-leading Code of Practice.

What services do we offer?

We believe that a funeral should be as individual as the person being remembered and offer a bespoke approach to fulfil your wishes, whilst respecting the memory of the person you love.

We can arrange traditional, modern, simple or low-cost direct funerals based on a burial, cremation or natural burial, religious, civil or non-religious service, as well as offering a variety of ‘green’ funeral options, from locally sourced flowers to alternative transport and coffins made from environmentally friendly materials.

Our dedicated and compassionate service extends to the arrangement of venue, vehicles, coffins, service options and music, plus other elements as required to create a fitting farewell for your loved one.

Are ‘Covid’ funerals different?

With gatherings currently limited to 30 mourners, funerals have become more intimate. As before, families can personalise services with music, flowers and readings. Some families are choosing, or have been restricted to, funerals being conducted at the graveside and have found being outside a great source of comfort and solace with views across the hills, bird song and being surrounded by nature’s beauty. And for those mourners who have not been able to attend the funeral, there has been a real return to traditional displays of respect, with friends, colleagues and neighbours wishing to stand at the roadside, doffing their hats and bowing their heads as the hearse passes by. If the family wishes, services can be filmed and streamed over the internet for family and friends who are not able to attend in person, thereby still allowing them to share and be part of the farewell celebration.

Throughout the pandemic, R. Locke & Son have been following the government advice, and from an early stage, we introduced safety measures to enable us to offer time for families to view their loved ones in our Chapel of Rest, even if they may have died from Covid. We feel that it is important for families, if they wish, to be given this opportunity to say goodbye to their loved one.

What about donations and flowers?

Families often wish to nominate a charity for donations to be given in place of, or in addition to, funeral flowers.

Covid has prevented cash donations on the day of the funeral, and with restricted numbers of attendees, many people have been unable to pledge their support in the usual ways. We are pleased to have introduced an online donations service to our website that makes absolutely no deductions from your donations and includes the option to add ‘Gift Aid’. As a company, we believe that every penny that is generously donated in memory of a loved one should go to the chosen charity. To make sure this happens, we cover the costs of all card and transaction fees.

Moving with the times

Whilst maintaining our traditional values, we are aware that it’s important to move with the times. Our website is regularly updated with recent funeral announcements incorporating links enabling visitors to the website to make an In Memoriam donation; this not only marks the loss of each person as a unique and individual character, but also enables the family to communicate key details to friends, family and community.

We have embraced the use of social media to further share information, regularly including on our website stories of interest or relevance, ranging from associated topics such as ‘The Language Of Flowers’ to wider, local news items as well as information regarding the SAIF Care bereavement support service, to further assist the families with whom we work.

Why we offer the SAIF Care service

We know that no-one can understand exactly what your loss feels like to you. But we do understand that it’s sometimes easier to talk to someone outside of your friends and family about grief and the impact of bereavement on your life. This is why we offer the SAIF Care bereavement support service with a Freephone help line, email support and webchat facility. Details can be found at www.rlockeandson.co.uk/bereavement-care

How can I contact you?

For more information please call us:
Brailes (01608) 685274
Kineton (01926) 640386
Wellesbourne (01789) 840744
or visit www.rlockeandson.co.uk