Funeral Directors London, Leverton & Sons, Independent Funeral Directors North London, traditional funerals, green funerals

In addition to our Head Office in Camden Town, we have 5 branches in north London and conduct funerals throughout the South-East of England and beyond.

As a family business, we are fortunate that even outside of the Leverton family, some of our colleagues’ partners and children are also part of the company. We have a team of drivers and bearers who have decades of experience between them.

The Company Directors

Clive and Jean

Women have been arranging funerals and taking care of families at Levertons for a long time. In the 60s, Bill and Bunty Bickerstaff ran a branch together, so Bunty was the pioneering first woman funeral director at Levertons – well ahead of her time! Next was my daughter Pippa in 1996, followed by Julie Clinton in 2000. Today, four of our funeral directors are women, including Julie ’s daughter, Carmel, and my wife Jean runs our branch in Muswell Hill.

Especially since the funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales, we have noticed significant changes in British funeral protocol. The use of contemporary music and personal tributes directly from family and friends is much more common today than before her death. Sometimes this means that extra time has to be made for the funeral service, but most people are comfortable with 30 – 45 minutes.

Another welcome change in the 21st century is environmental consciousness. Beautiful woodland burial sites are emerging around London. The city’s crematoria already observe strict rules regarding pollution and are now researching more solutions for the future. We are very proud to be among the founding members of the Association of Green Funeral Directors, established in 2009, and that Richard Putt has been invited onto its Executive. See also Natural Options.

We also notice an increase in funerals from further away. We can only assume that this is because people may move away from North London, but in a time of need, they choose a trusted funeral director who has helped them in the past.

Whether the funeral is religious, semi-religious or non-religious, we strive to find the right person to conduct the ceremony which is appropriate to you and the person who has died. Some families and friends feel able to lead the ceremony themselves, but bear in mind that organising and conducting a service without professional help can add extra stress. If you choose a religious, civil or humanist celebrant, you are still welcome to read your own tribute, a poem or prose. A very dignified ceremony is comfortably conducted without artifice and everyone’s contribution is valued.

Clive

Pippa

Andrew

Richard

Our profession is perfectly suited to a family company. Working with the deceased and the bereaved is a vocation – not every Leverton has chosen to join the company. But a moment has occurred for each of us at Leverton & Sons when we realised that while many people shrink from the event of death, we do not. It feels natural that our family, and the extended family that is our staff, should be the ones to care for the dead and the bereaved. Perhaps we just accept that death, grief and shock are natural. This is an extraordinary moment in life when strong emotions are accompanied by the necessity of clear pragmatic actions to be taken within a short space of time.

Today the company is run by myself, Clive, my daughter Pippa and my nephew Andrew. Both Pippa and Andrew worked and studied in other fields before deciding to join the firm. It’s difficult for a teenager to live at home and then go straight into a family business.

6 years ago we invited Richard Putt to become a director after 29 years of service to the company. In 220 years, he is the first company director from outside of our family. Richard’s father was a funeral director, so he grew up above the shop and helped his dad from an early age. When a schoolroom hamster or goldfish died, Richard was the obvious choice to conduct the funeral ceremony. Truly a lifetime of experience! He has been with Levertons for 36 years, but declines to reveal the date of his first pet ceremony.

I’m very proud of my family and our company. From princes to paupers, we have treated every funeral with the same level of respect over 220 years. Levertons is very fortunate in that most of our staff stay with us for many years. From our embalmer, to drivers and bearers, funeral directors, and company directors, experience counts.

That’s not to say that there are no surprises – every funeral is different. We are guided by the people who come to us. Listening carefully to the bereaved and honouring the wishes of the person who has died is probably our greatest strength. And then we make wishes into realities.