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Why Think About Funeral Wishes

Article written by Rebecca Hillier

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Why Is It Important To Think About Your Funeral Wishes In Advance?

Whilst thinking about your funeral may be a difficult thing to do, making decisions about your funeral while you are still alive will not only ensure you get the funeral you want, but it also really helps to make a difficult time a little easier for loved ones when the time comes to arrange your funeral.

We regularly see families who do not know if their loved one wanted a cremation or a burial, and not knowing this makes arranging the funeral even more emotionally difficult as families are left guessing if they are making the right decision on your behalf, and can be left with feelings of guilt about whether they made the right decision.

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5 Reasons Why It’s A Good Idea To Start Thinking About Your Funeral Wishes

1.  Peace Of Mind For You And Your Loved Ones

Planning your funeral wishes ahead of time allows you to take control of your final send off, and relieves your family from the some of burden of making difficult decisions during an emotional time.

Knowing your preferences will provide them with clear guidance and peace of mind when it matters most

2.     Honouring Your True Wishes

Your funeral is a personal reflection of your life, values, and beliefs. By planning ahead, you ensure that every detail aligns with your wishes, the format and style of funeral service you choose, the coffin, the funeral songs and readings, as well as your final resting place.

You have the power to create a meaningful tribute that resonates with your story and celebrates your life on your own terms.

3.     Financial preparation

Funeral costs can be overwhelming and unexpected. When you plan in advance, you can explore and understand the financial options available, and make decisions today about how your funeral will be paid for.

Planning ahead also allows you to explore prepayment options with a Prepaid Funeral Plan.

4.      Easing Family Stress

When a loved one dies, grieving family members are often left to guess what their loved one would have wanted for their funeral.

By documenting your preferences, you remove uncertainty and disagreements, allowing your family to focus on supporting one another rather than making rushed decisions under pressure. Our Funeral Wishes form has been created to guide you through the process of documenting your funeral wishes.

5.     A Thoughtful And Responsible Choice

Taking the time to think about and document your funeral arrangements demonstrates care and responsibility for those you love.

It’s a final act of love, ensuring your family can celebrate your life without added stress or worry. Your forward-thinking decision helps them honor your memory with clarity and confidence.

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Choosing The Right Funeral Director

Choosing the funeral director that you wish your family to use for your funeral when the time comes is one of the most important and helpful decisions you can make in advance.

The right funeral director will offer more than just services, they will provide comfort, compassion and understanding and will hold your family’s hand throughout every stage of the arrangement process and on the day of the funeral, and will ensure you get a unique and fitting send off.

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About Hilliers Funeral Service

The Hillier family has been caring for the people of Swindon and it’s surrounding areas for four generations since 1923.

Today Mark and Rebecca Hillier lead an experienced team of funeral professionals who will treat you and your family with the utmost care, compassion, empathy.

Our way to is to spend time getting to know your family and finding out about you as a person as this allows us to show your family all the ways we can create a truly personal farewell.

No matter what type of funeral you decide, big or small, we always go the extra mile to make sure your family have all the guidance and support they need at every stage.

And with us, our care and support doesn’t end on the day of the funeral. Our Bereavement Care Service is available free of charge to help families through the difficult grieving process.

Our team
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Our Clients Give Us 5 Stars

We are very honoured that many of our clients like to tell us how the service they received from us made them feel. We’d like to share some of these comments with you below.

  • Avatar Chris Benny 18 December 2024 ★★★★★
    Can’t thank Hilliers enough and the entire team who showed the highest level of care, compassion, kindness and love whilst looking after Sean.
    Although the past month has been filled with sadness the team at hilliers have always been there     … read more to support so thank you.
    Although the entire team deserve the biggest thanks from a personal point of view an extra thank you goes to Tracy who has been a rock throughout.
    Thank you ❤️🧡❤️🧡
  • Avatar Sarah Donegan 08 December 2024 ★★★★★
    We cannot recommend Hillier Funeral Service highly enough.
    Absolutely seamless from beginning to end.
    The service was held in the beautiful reception room at Kingshill House, with light streaming in through the windows followed by a discreet     … read more reception in the cosy room upstairs.
    The building has been restored so sympathetically and with such thought, making for its fitting ambience.
    Nick Sanbrooke guided us perfectly every step of the way ensuring we had the most beautiful send off for our loved one.
    Thank you Nick and all the team at Hillier.
  • Avatar kady butcher 05 December 2024 ★★★★★
    I can’t thank Hilliers enough for everything they did for my dad and us as a family, from the moment my dad was in their care right up until after the funeral they have been amazing and has helped us as a family get through an incredibly … read more difficult time, and I know that we have their continued support going forward, you are an incredible team and we thank you from the bottom of our hearts ♥️
  • Avatar Amelia Chimirri Aird 04 November 2024 ★★★★★
    The team at Hillier’s made a difficult time in our lives that much easier. They really wanted to know as much detail about my grandfather, so they could really get a feel for what kind of man he was. Nick matched the perfect celebrant (Pauline) … read more based on my granddad’s personality, allowing us to give him the send off that he would have be proud of.
    They were respectful and caring throughout the whole process.
    The support they offer is second to none. We couldn’t recommend them enough.
    Thank you to Nick and the rest of the Hilliers family.
    From Fred Davidson’s loved ones.
  • Avatar John Simons 04 October 2024 ★★★★★
    From the start contact was sympathetic and understanding. Arrangements were not pressured but rather advisory and understanding of circumstances. Being a local undertaker they are not encumbered by needs of a large organisation to standardise … read more practices and can prioritise individual needs.
  • Avatar David Polden 30 September 2024 ★★★★★
    Wendy, Dave and family would like to thank everyone at Hillier Funeral Services for helping, organising and ‘holding our hands’ throughout the whole process of planning the most amazing funeral for my father recently. The consideration … read more and care was provided with sensitivity, dignity and respect throughout this difficult and emotional time.
    Special thanks to Sue and Jerry who provided everything we asked for in a very prompt and professional manner and delivered to us with great sincerity, from a Bugler to a bubble machine we had it all. We appreciate every moment spent with us at this difficult and emotional time. Thank you.
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The Hillier Promise

  • To care for you and your loved one as if you are members of our own family
  • To be open, honest and truthful in all we do
  • To always deliver excellence and go the extra mile
  • To give back to the community we live in and are part of
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Our Funeral Homes

Hillier Funeral Service is one of Swindon’s oldest family businesses.

We have three funeral homes covering Swindon, Wroughton, Royal Wootton Bassett, Purton, Chiseldon, Wanborough, Cricklade, Lydiard Millicent, Highworth, Fairford, Lechlade, Shrivenham and local villages.

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Talk To Us About Your Funeral Wishes

If you would like to talk through funeral wishes, or would like to understand more about what choices and options are available to personalise your funeral, please get in touch and we can help you not only with documenting your wishes, but also give you advice and guidance on how best to discuss your wishes with your loved one.