Derby’s longest established family-owned funeral directors is opening its doors to the public on Saturday to showcase what goes on behind the scenes.
Helen Wathall MBE, the managing director at Wathall’s, is offering free guided talks and tours of the Macklin Street site to sensitively demystify the hidden parts of the funeral industry.
Visitors will be able to view the newly refurbished mortuary and embalming suite and look round the arrangement rooms, chapel of rest and counselling rooms and funeral vehicles.
The two-hour event takes place Saturday, October 11th, from 10am.
Helen said: “Since the mid 2000’s, we have annually opened our doors to the public. This was a practice we had to pause because of the Covid pandemic, so we are very much looking forward to the weekend.
“What we want to do is show people around Wathall’s and give visitors the chance to ask questions and learn more about what we do.
“Experienced staff will be on hand at the open morning to talk to everyone and answer their questions
“Our mission is to make funerals less scary, and we believe the way to do this is by demystifying what actually goes on at our Derby HQ.”
Visitors will be able to see the arrangement rooms, counselling room, chapels of rest and the assembly room. There will also be live demonstrations of funeral floristry and a coffin workshop.
Information will also be available about all the different services available at Wathall’s including traditional funerals, cremation services and bereavement support including one-to-one bereavement counselling and the award-winning Dandelions Bereavement Support, which offers families ongoing support with their grief journey through free monthly meetings.
Family photographs and letters collected by Wathall’s over its 167 years in business will be on display during the day including World War One postcards and drawings from the first motorised hearse in Derby.
Helen said: “From past events like this, we know how valuable these open days can be, and this is why we have organised another.
“We will be on hand to chat to people about our work and talk about the different services we offer including traditional funerals, cremation services, bereavement support, pre-paid funeral plans and memorial mason services.”
Booking is not essential but registering will mean you receive a goody bag on the day. To sign up, visit Eventbrite.
Doors open at 10am and the address is Wathall’s, 101-111 Macklin Street, Derby.
