Funeral Service Operative

Southern Co-op; Bournemouth; On-site; GBP 20,000 - 30,000; Full time

Job summary

A community-focused independent cooperative in Bournemouth is seeking a Funeral Service Operative to provide compassionate care at the end of life. Your duties will include collecting and preparing the deceased, driving funeral vehicles, and supporting families during a challenging time. Excellent communication, resilience, and compassion are essential for this physically and emotionally demanding role. Full training is provided, and shifts will include on-call responsibilities. Competitive benefits include discounts and life insurance.

Benefits

20% colleague discount in retail shops

Health & dental cash plans

24/7 virtual GP services

Employee Assistance Programme

Life insurance & NEST pension

Financial wellbeing tools

Training & development opportunities

Qualifications

• Must have a full UK driving license.
• Must be over 25 for insurance purposes.

Responsibilities

• Collecting the deceased and bringing them into care.
• Driving vehicles and ensuring they are pristine for funerals.
• Acting as a bearer and supporting local communities.

Skills

Excellent communication & listening skills

Resilience and ability to work under pressure

Empathy and compassion

Job description

We’re offering an exciting opportunity to deliver the best end of life care, support, and experience to the deceased and their families at their time of need. As a Funeral Service Operative you’ll assist in the smooth delivery of funerals, from collection, transportation, and preparation of the deceased, through to driving our vehicles and acting as a conductor or bearer. This is a physically and emotionally demanding role.

You’ll need a full UK driving license (valid for both manual and automatic vehicles) and for insurance purposes you must be over 25.

Shifts will be worked Monday to Friday and you’ll be required to work on call and out of hours as part of our on call rota (evenings, weekends, overnight).

What you’ll get…

• 20% colleague discount in our retail shops
• Health & dental cash plans
• 24/7 virtual GP & fitness discounts via Aviva Digicare+ Workplace
• Employee Assistance Programme
• Life insurance & NEST pension
• Financial wellbeing tools & share incentive scheme
• Cycle-to-work & Electric Vehicle schemes
• Training & development opportunities

What to expect…

• Collecting the deceased and bringing them into our care. This may involve challenging locations and circumstances.
• Helping dress and prepare the deceased, including preparing for viewing and placing the deceased into the coffin or casket.
• Driving our vehicles and ensuring all are in a pristine condition for each funeral.
• Acting as a bearer.
• Supporting our local communities and acting as a trusted ambassador for our funeral care services.
• This role will involve manual handling.

What we’re looking for…

• Excellent communication & listening skills.
• Can demonstrate resilience and work under pressure.
• High level of understanding, empathy, and compassion.

Training…

• Previous experience within the funeral industry is not required as we’ll provide full training.
• Travel to other sites will be required.

About Us…

We’re an independent Co‑op operating cross‑the‑south of England running convenience food stores, funeral homes, crematoria, natural/woodland burial grounds and a Starbucks coffee franchise. We’re owned by our members, have over 4,000 colleagues and a purpose of working together for the benefit of our communities. We have a commitment to sustainable business and a promise to provide a fair, fresh approach, for all. Become part of the family who are proud to serve local communities and put people first.

Recruitment Process…

• Make your application
• If you’re successful, we’ll contact you to arrange a telephone interview
• If you’re successful, we’ll arrange an on‑site interview and review your Eligibility to Work in the UK documentation
• Feedback and next steps

Successful candidates will undergo a DBS check as part of compliance requirements.

If we receive a high volume of relevant applications, we may close the advert earlier than the advertised date, so please apply as soon as you can.