More families opting to take control of the funeral process

Thursday, 21 September 2017

The new natural burials area is a cheaper option for interment at Waikumete Cemetery.

The popularity of do-it-yourself funerals is rising at the country's largest cemetery.

It is possible these days to ditch the funeral director and do pretty much everything except dig the hole at Waikumete Cemetery in west Auckland.

Sheree Stout in front of plots marked out in Waikumete Cemetery's new natural burials area.

'It's still a minority, but we are getting a lot more enquiries than we had been getting in the past,' head sexton Sheree Stout said

Such services were called 'family-led', and people were able to transport the body in their own vehicle and store it at home for a while before taking it for burial or cremation.

The military section at Waikumete Cemetery.

An example grave marker – for John Snow – at Waikumete Cemtery's new natural burial area where grave markers have to be biodegradable.

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The natural burial area under construction at Waikumete Cemetery, with room for 300 bodies.

DIY caskets were also possible, as long as it was approved by the cemetery. A casket could be as simple as a shroud bearer - a board with a footrest.

'With different lifestyles come different ideas about how they would like to be treated in death,' Stout said.

Waikumete Cemetery open day will be held on November 12, when its wildflowers are in bloom.

The main restrictions for burials were that the cemetery must dig the plot and the proper legal paperwork must be completed, Stout said.

Family-led services were not for everyone, or every situation, however.

Transporting a body that had been in a car accident might be too much for some, Stout said.

'Unfortunately not everyone dies peacefully in their sleep after 99 years,' she said.

Respect for the dead was also important, and the funeral organiser needed to be aware that whatever happened during the service would likely be remembered.

'But there are people who are quite adamant that it is something they want to do on their own, and we want to encourage and help them on that journey – just as we do with people who want to use funeral directors.'

Waikumete Cemetery also has a new native-bush natural burial area under construction, a cheaper option than a standard plot.

People who used it often opted for family-led services.

The area was due to be finished in time for Waikumete Cemetery's open day on November 12.

Eight plots had already been sold, and three people were already buried there.

Stout said the free open day, from 10am to 4pm, was a good time for people to ask questions. About 2000 people came to the last open day in February last year, she said.

'When you turn up to a cemetery you are normally in a position that you are attending a death. It's not deemed a good time to be popping your hand up and be asking lots of questions.'

It was $4133 for the cheapest standard plot at Waikumete Cemetery, plus $1108 to dig the hole.

Standard cremation was $589, plus $620 for the space to bury the ashes.

In New Zealand, the average funeral costs between $8000 and $10,000. Some funeral homes offer 'direct cremation' options, where no service is held. These cost just under $2000.