Funeral Service Operative - Casual Hours

Southern Co-op; Sandhurst; On-site; GBP 18,000 - 26,000; Part time

Benefits offered by this job

Colleague discount

Health & dental plans

Aviva Digicare+ discounts

Employee Assistance Programme

Life insurance & pension

Financial wellbeing tools

Cycle-to-work & EV schemes

Training and development

Job summary

Southern Co-op is seeking a Funeral Service Operative to support the delivery of funerals from collection to viewing and transportation, and to act as a bearer and driver. The role is physically and emotionally demanding and requires a full UK driving licence and willingness to travel between sites.

Shifts are casual, with on-call duties including evenings, weekends and overnight as part of an on-call rota. Training is provided; DBS check will be conducted as part of compliance.

Qualifications

• Excellent communication and listening skills
• Ability to demonstrate resilience under pressure and handle emotionally challenging situations
• High level of empathy and compassion for families and colleagues

Responsibilities

• Collect the deceased and bring them into care, sometimes in challenging locations or circumstances
• Assist in dressing and preparing the deceased for viewing and placement into the coffin
• Drive funeral vehicles and maintain them in pristine condition
• Act as bearer during services
• Support local communities and act as a trusted ambassador for funeral care services
• Manual handling is involved

Skills

Communication

Resilience under pressure

Empathy & 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 on a casual basis, when the need arises. These 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
• 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 across 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 300,000+ 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.

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.