Sarah’s job success

She is one of UK’s youngest in role

A young West Lothian woman has chosen a different career path from many of her peers - becoming one of the youngest funeral operatives in the UK.

Sarah Webb (20) from Armadale, is a funeral service operative at Scotmid Co-operative Funerals in Edinburgh.

And her career has seen her realise an interest in the job that she has held from a young age.

Sarah said: “When I was a bit younger we had a lot of deaths in the family and the funeral directors would come to the house and I would think they were interesting and different.”

The former Armadale Academy pupil said there was nothing really in her school life to help ready her for a life in the funeral industry.

She joked that her friends thought she was “crazy” when she told them of her ambition.

Sarah said: “I didn’t want to stay on at school.

“I wanted to go out and start working but there wasn’t really anything in school that could help me prepare towards this role.”

After leaving school, Sarah started applying for jobs, aged 18, and found work as a funeral arranger for a company in Edinburgh.

When she had worked there for five months she successfully applied to Scotmid Co-opertive Funerals to work as a funeral operative.

And while Sarah says she absolutely loves her job, she is aware that it isn’t for everyone.

She said: “I don’t think that there’s any age limit to who can do this, you just need to have a passion for it.

“You can’t come in just because it’s a job, and it takes up your time Monday to Friday.

“If you do, you will soon find out that it’s not for you. “But I love it. I love what I do.” One of the aspects that Sarah finds most rewarding about her job is being able to help families in some of their more vulnerable moments.

She said: “We can help them and be there for them, and be there for whatever they need. “It’s my job to look after them.” Sarah can be the first point of contact for a family who have recently lost a loved one.

She will arrive at the house, regardless of the hour, with the private ambulance to bring the deceased into the funeral director’s care. But her role doesn’t end there. She then may stay with the family the whole way through the process, even driving the hearse or the family to the service on the day of the funeral.

Ian Benning, a Scotmid funeral director, says it can be a tough job which requires care and compassion.

He said: “I will get a phone call to say that someone has died and I will contact Sarah and her colleagues to go out with the private ambulance.

“They are visiting the house when someone’s has just died, which is when the families are in their rawest moment.

“So I think that this role is probably one of the most challenging.”