If you're coming to Coles by car, why not take advantage of the 2 hours free parking at Sainsbury's Pioneer Square - just follow the signs for Pioneer Square as you drive into Bicester and park in the multi-storey car park above the supermarket. Come down the travelators, exit Sainsbury's, turn right and follow the pedestrianised walkway to Crown Walk and turn right - and Coles will be right in front of you. You don't need to shop in Sainsbury's to get the free parking! Where to Find Us Sometimes you just know that you are going to love a book from the first few sentences and that was absolutely the case with Ashes to Admin. Evie King also struggles with her role and emotions in all of this. What is she supposed to feel, or not, in relation to the people she is organising funerals for? With every death some sort of relationship is formed, and some cases, like the burial of someone with learning difficulties, hit closer to home than others. Not everyone who has their funeral carried out under Section 46 is alone or estranged, There will also be individuals with next of kin to mourn them, but who are unable to bear the costs of the arrangements due to financial hardship and the rising price of funerals.

Ashes to Admin London Month of the Dead - Ashes to Admin

Evie King, former comedian and a part-time writer. King has previously contributed to New Humanist, Guardian Comment is Free, BBC Comedy and Viz Comic.

Summary

Diane (Philomena Cunk) Morgan: "A fascinating, poignant, and funny insight into the slightly macabre world of a Council Funeral Officer." A fascinating, poignant and FUNNY insight into the slightly macabre world of a council funeral officer’– Diane Morgan You don't need to be a funeral professional to enjoy this book; it's written in an easy style that makes it easy reading and I recommend it to everyone I speak too now. My company is also giving a copy to each of our new starters as an example of what going above and beyond in the interests of the deceased can look like. As she learns on the job, her story is told through a series of case studies, from bodies discovered at home, to deaths in care homes, and on through to the outbreak of Covid, this is an insight into the way death is dealt with on a political and personal level. Where care homes have agreements with funeral homes, where families are embarrassed because they can't pay for a loved one's funeral, and the care a council can give. The idea of a paupers' funeral, even now, gives pause. the author is a fantastic narrator and the perfect person to guide us through this book, the emotional parts and the funny anecdotes too.

Ashes To Admin: Tales from the Caseload of a - WHSmith

I thus experienced first-hand the magic of the work that Evie King does. Evie King works for her local council and part of her job is to carry out funerals under Section 46. It is not a given that there are people available to organise a funeral after someone dies, but legally in the UK councils are responsible when no-one is available. People are not just thrown in a ditch and forgotten. Hey. An update on [name], who you put in touch with me. I got a response from the person on the death cert and got a response with the exact location of the scattering, along with a full eulogy! Thought you would want to know x.Death is something we all have in common so I'm always up for a book about it and this one (obviously) has it in (gravedigger) spades. It's a poignant, sometimes difficult, bizarre, and yet incredibly uplifting read. Evie King is a council worker charged with sorting out Section 46 funerals - funerals for those with no one or no one able or willing to do so on their behalf. Alongside dealing with the standard complaints we expect the council to deal with (bin collections, noise, dog poo, etc), she sees humanity, life, and death in all its strangeness. It's a job that encompasses plenty of persistent detective work, grief counseling, the obvious (and not so obvious) admin, and a tonne of empathy. When few details are known about the deceased, King then embarks on a search for any existing family, friends, colleagues, documentation, etc who can shed light on the dead person's life and thereby help her to tailor the funeral service to what the deceased would have liked, or what seems the most appropriate and pleasing. Where this becomes impossible is when either the deceased has no apparent family or their identity is unknown. This is where King comes into her own, setting out on a mission to find out whatever she can about them, using all the means at her disposal and some inspired methods of her own. She doesn't always succeed, but it's heartening to see the lengths to which she goes and the effort she puts in. What happens if you die without family or money? The answer to this very three-in-the-morning question is that Evie, or someone like her, will step in and arrange your funeral. LoveReading exists because books change lives, and buying books through LoveReading means you get to change the lives of future generations, with 25% of the cover price donated to schools in need. Join our community to get personalised book suggestions, extracts straight to your inbox, 10% off RRPs, and to change children’s lives. King talks about her early days in the job, and with each case, we see her expertise and knowledge developing and growing. She learns how to become immune to the "smell of death" to maggots in months'-old food and, in the process, realises that she possesses a talent for organising respectful funerals for the dispossessed dead.

Ashes To Admin: Tales from the Caseload of a Council Funeral Ashes To Admin: Tales from the Caseload of a Council Funeral

Moving out of London to the seaside, Evie found herself needing a job, and ended up working for a local council.The chapters that follow, poignantly named after some of the individuals whose funerals Evie organised, and whose lives she here respects and honours, are filled with stirring details. Honest on how it feels, as an administrative official, to witness so many tragic lives, troubled lives, and lives that might have been different, and how it feels to be confronted by death so brutally on a daily basis, this is a uniquely absorbing read. King's book is enlightening for readers in respect of what a "Council Funeral" actually entails. One of her cases is that of a man whose family, are in receipt of benefits, as was he, and who are devastated by the thought that their loved one will receive only a cheap, perfunctory send-off because even collectively they couldn't afford anything more. In fact, the reassuring truth is that a Section 46 funeral may have fewer frills than other funerals, but it is still every bit as respectful and dignified. Easy read. Felt a little voyeuristic at times and I felt her jokey style a bit off putting. I question how typical her experiences are and whether the fact that Section 46 funerals are just good in her council because she's so invested in it and has a supportive council. I know of others which are not like she describes at all. Death is a great motivator and, ironically, life coach’ there is so much truth in this. Personally, the more that I’ve spent time considering my mortality and preparing for it, the more I realise what I want to acheive. One thing I soon learned from reading this book is that Section 46 funerals are nothing like the dismal image of a pauper's funeral that I had in my head. If the deceased has left behind documentation relating to their wishes concerning their committal, those wishes will be carried out: if there's no such information, or the deceased's identity is unknown, they will still receive a dignified send-off.

By Evie King Ashes To Admin (Tales from the Caseload of a

Imagine having that sentence said to you. And then imagine it actually being pertinent. Welcome to Evie King’s world. As someone who works at a Council and studied death culture at university, it was probably inevitable that I would find Ashes to Admin immensely enjoyable. The author instils the stories of those who have received a Section 46 Council funeral with a level of humour which makes what at times can be quite an emotional read also a very funny one. I am asking because my dad was estranged from his sister, my aunt, who I never met. He had wanted to see her again when he was dying but I didn't know how to find her. However, last year I discovered she had passed away early in 2022 and so sent for her death certificate. Sadly it contains similar words, "causing the body to be cremated" and I suspect the person who did that may have a similar role to yourself. I would like to know where my aunt's final resting place is. I have this slight concern of what if her ashes are unclaimed somewhere. I just want to know she's been laid to rest properly somewhere and to feel she is at peace. It isn't your name on the certificate but I thought you may be able to advise/help me”Imagine having that sentence said to you. And then imagine it actually being pertinent. Welcome to Evie King's world. Evie King is the pen name of Christina Martin. She is a former stand up comedian and a part-time writer. She has always written short form pieces, in the margins of her various day jobs, contributing to New Humanist, Guardian Comment is Free, BBC Comedy and Viz Comic. Since moving to the seaside and going part-time she has had more time for writing which has accumulated in Ashes to Admin.