LETTER : Bespoke funerals still available

From The Rev Martin Leigh

Sir: In your editorial today ("Say goodbye to the British way of death"), you write about what you do not know, and nor, apparently, does Lord Young of Dartington (" 'Charter for the Dead' targets funerals", 1 February). This church, like the vast majority in the land, deals with most of the funerals in the area it serves. We took more than 400 last year. Just about every family was visited beforehand and most afterwards, too. All the ministers here attempt to find out about the life of the deceased, and to talk about him or her at the service.

Most undertakers are calm, courteous and efficient. Otherwise they would be out of business.

The valid point you make is the "sausage-machine" quality of crematoria. Our local one forces us into 20-minute slots when it is busy, and that is too short.

Occasionally someone takes or organises something that is faulty and, therefore, disastrous. Then, quite rightly, there are complaints. If the great and the good (like yourselves and Lord Young) fall into this category, they make a huge fuss and generalise from a very limited experience. Perhaps you might commission some market research to see how ordinary people view these matters of life and death.

Yours faithfully,

Martin Leigh

Team Rector of King's Norton

Birmingham

31 January