098 PLANNING FOR LATER LIFE SPECIAL
indexmagazine.co.uk
Ways to say goodbye Funerals are an opportunity for families and friends to say
goodbye to a loved one and to celebrate their life, so it’s important to know the options – alongside the traditional funerals, burials and cremations – available to ensure the best fi nal send off
hough it may feel uncomfortable, pre-planning a funeral can only be a benefi t to you and your family, ensuring that your wishes are carried out and that costs don’t escalate. However, this can be a very diffi cult conversation to have, especially when there are so many options available. Here we guide you through “alternative” choices on offer.
T Green funerals
In order to reduce costs and their impact on the environment, many people are choosing to go down the green funeral route, using natural biodegradable-based coffi ns, and carrying out burials in unspoilt landscapes. There are a range of biodegradable materials for coffi ns ranging from banana leaf to wool, with prices averaging at around £500, and a growing number
of cemeteries today offer burials in a beautiful woodland areas or gardens with trees replacing stone headstones.
Themed funerals The Co-op has seen a recent increase
in the number of people electing for personalised or themed funerals refl ecting the interests of the person being laid to rest. Themed funerals can reference anything, from a persons’ love of
superheroes to motorbikes, with guests wearing fancy dress or bright colours.
Celebration of life/humanist
With attitudes towards death ever changing and society becoming increasingly
secularised, there has been a large rise in people choosing to celebrate the life of their loved one rather than mourn their passing. The tone is more one of happiness than sadness, wearing black is discouraged, and they are often held in buildings that aren’t tied to a religion. It isn’t for everyone, but it is increasingly becoming a way to celebrate life rather than mourn it.
There is such a thing as a free lunch!
Kindness is still going strong in Tonbridge, with a mystery local from the Cardinal’s Error Pub donating lunch to the residents at Barnes Lodge Care Home in Tudeley Lane, who enjoyed a buffet of sandwiches and scones, washed down with a drink or two. Whilst the donor remains a
mystery, guests were allowed to know the preferred tipple of the kind person, which was
a great choice of Hendrick’s Gin. Residents ensured they put money behind the bar as a “thank you” drink, along with a card signed by everyone. Stewart Milford, landlord of
the Cardinal’s Error, said: “We are so happy to have Barnes Lodge residents here. Our aim is to make this pub the heart of the community and things like this are such a positive experience for us.” Debbie Long, activities
coordinator at Barnes Lodge, added: “Our residents loved their buffet, we are so grateful. It is so nice to have the support from local businesses like this.” • Visit
rapporthousingandcare.co.uk
TACKLING DEMENTIA Award-winning educational programme Time for Dementia, which is designed to create a new generation of doctors, nurses and paramedics who are more aware and understanding of dementia, is to recruit families living with dementia in Kent to train the next generation of healthcare professionals. The Time for Dementia programme provides undergraduate healthcare professionals with on-going, regular contact with a person with dementia and their carer. As a result of the success and expansion of Time for Dementia, the programme now needs to recruit more than 200 families in Kent. It is of the utmost importance to involve people with a diagnosis of dementia and their carers or family in training the healthcare professionals of tomorrow. There are more than 67,500 people living with dementia
in Kent, Surrey and Sussex (over 23,000 of them in Kent). • If you and your family would like to be a part of this innovative programme email timefordementia@alzheimers.
org.uk or call 07713 779582.
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108 |
Page 109 |
Page 110
