Scandal of rise in pauper’s funerals
More families unable to afford costs of farewells
THE number of people opting for a “pauper’s funeral” because their families can’t afford the costs of a proper farewell is rising.
In the past decade, 3383 people have needed the state to step in to preserve their final dignity, at a cost of more than £2.8million.
The number of National Assistance Funerals paid for by local authorities rose from 1686 between 2010 and 2015 to 1712 over the past five years.
Twelve local authorities provided no data.
Councils must step in when people die without the means to pay for their funeral.
Basic ceremonies are held in the early morning with only a council celebrant in attendance.
For those receiving benefits or tax credits, the Scottish Government’s Funeral Support Payment pays an average of £1500 towards costs of a normal funeral, depending on circumstances. But Tim Purves, of the National Association of Funeral Directors, said assistance had remained unchanged for years, leading to a rise in pauper’s funerals.
He added: “A National Assistance Funeral is often a last resort and we would always encourage families to speak to a funeral director to assess all available options before taking that route.”
Scottish Labour’s Rhoda Grant said: “Cuts to local government budgets are making this situation worse by forcing local authorities to charge people more for burials and that’s a self-defeating exercise because it means more people cannot afford a funeral and the costs fall back on local government.”
The Scottish Government said a Funeral Costs Plan was available to help people on low incomes.
A spokeswoman added that the Funeral Support Payment “supports around 5000 people a year… our increased eligibility means it reaches 40 per cent more than the DWP benefit it replaced”.