Gay Funeral Venture
23 June 2011 08:56Co-operative Funeralcare has forged the first nationwide funeral partnership with the UK's gay community ahead of new laws coming into force next month giving gay couples the same legal rights as opposite sex couples.
The UK's leading funeral director, which conducts over 80,000 funerals annually, has become official funeral supplier to Pink Partings, part of the Pink Weddings family, and has joined forces to offer funeral advice and support for gay families via a new website.
pink partings provides information on a wide variety of issues from what practical steps to take when someone dies to the options and choices available in funeral arrangements.
The Civil Partnership Act will come into force on 5 December, giving the gay community full legal control in matters relating to the death of a partner including registration of the death and funeral arrangements.
Pink Partings is part of Pink Weddings, the country's first gay wedding planning company of its kind, and has been created to cater for the funeral needs of the gay community. An estimated 50,000 gay funerals take place in the UK each year.
Co-operative Funeralcare has a nationwide network of 600 funerals homes and a strong reputation for the care and support it provides for thousands of bereaved people each year. It works hard to make people aware of the options and choices open to them when making funeral arrangements.
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Gino Meriano, the driving force behind Pink Partings, commented: "We have been campaigning for equal treatment and recognition for same sex families for the past few years. The establishment of the Civil Partnership is a major step forward and I am proud that Co-operative Funeralcare is joining us in making our vision come true.
"This initiative further demonstrates our commitment to wider and stronger social recognition by society of same sex families."
Co-operative Funeralcare's Sharon White said that while the organisation was already entrusted with the funerals of many gay people, this initiative represented the first concerted effort to promote its services to the gay community.
"In essence there is nothing to separate a gay person's funeral from anyone else's - sensitivity, support and attention to detail is at the heart of every funeral we carry out," she explained. "What is significant is that the new act will officially recognise same sex partners as next of kin, putting them in a much stronger position to determine the funeral arrangements for the person they have lost.
"We are pleased to have formed this partnership with Pink Partings, which will enable the two organisations to combine their knowledge base and provide a high level of funeral service to the gay community."
