Name: Celebration of Life Planning Ltd
Address: Enterprise House Ocean Way, Southampton, Hampshire, SO14 3XB, United Kingdom
Telephone: 0800 150 3555

Celebration of Life

At Celebration of Life, we're proud to focus our efforts completely on direct cremation to ensure we offer the best possible service throughout.

We're a team of 20 lovely people who are with you at each stage of the process, from first call to the hand return of ashes and everything in between.

When you're ready to give us a call, we look forward to answering any questions you might have.

Arrange a direct cremation with
Celebration of Life

Arrange a cremation for someone who has passed away

Our fully inclusive direct cremation prepaid plan

What makes our direct cremation different?

Simple, affordable and straight forward pricing

We let family know the date and time of cremation

We donate to plant a tree in memory of your loved one

We're here to help, every step of the way

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What is COL?

COL is an abbreviation of Celebration of Life. A leading direct cremation provider covering mainland Great Britain. Celebration of Life is Great Britain’s only cremation brand offering direct cremation both as a prepaid plan or at the time of need, and nothing else. By focusing solely on this type of service, Celebration of Life has been able to make sure that each part of the process is being provided in the best possible way. This has meant Celebration of Life have been able to achieve the highest rating for a direct cremation plan in 2026 awarded by Fairer Finance.

Why Celebration of Life (COL)?

Our name was born out of the vision that families no longer need to experience a rushed and expensive funeral as the only available option. Instead they can celebrate the life of their loved one in a meaningful and positive way and separate the cremation from the celebration. We let the family know the date and time of the cremation so they can do something special at the time. Then once the ashes are returned, family and friends have the freedom to gather for a unique and personal celebration of life.

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What is included?

24/7 Urgent care
A 5 star rated direct cremation service
Collection from within mainland Great Britain*
A simple, traditional coffin
Removal of any electronic devices such as a pacemaker
All disbursements including crematorium fees
An unattended cremation at our trusted partner crematorium
Ashes returned by hand or scattered at the crematorium
Donation to plant a tree in memory
Freedom to plan a unique and personal send-off

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Collection
Cremation
Ashes
Celebration

When is the cremation needed?

A funeral without the bells and whistles

A Celebration of Life Direct Cremation (COL) is a simple, low-cost alternative to a traditional funeral where no service is held at the crematorium. Instead we let the family know the date and time of when the cremation will take place, so they can do something special at home.

We then contact the family within 21 days of the cremation date to arrange a suitable time to return the ashes by hand. So the people who matter the most can celebrate the life of their loved one in a positive and more personal way.

Find out about our prepaid plan

How does Celebration of Life (COL) return the ashes?

After a direct cremation with Celebration of Life (COL), if you would like the ashes to be returned to you by hand, they will arrive in a biodegradable scatter tube shown here unless you supply us with your own choice of urn. You can bury this directly in the ground or use it to scatter the ashes somewhere special.

There are also many other things you can do with the ashes to make the moment a special memory. You could turn some into jewellery or a range of other keepsakes. You could even send them into the sky with a firework, release them off a boat at sea or plant them with a seedling to grow into a tree.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What coffin is used for a direct cremation?

Celebration of Life (COL) use simple MDF coffins that use responsibly and sustainably sourced materials to ensure that as little solid wood is used as possible. We do not use cardboard coffins as crematoriums do not like this material being used.

Will I know when the direct cremation takes place?

The Celebration of Life team (COL) will contact you with as much notice as possible to advise you of the date and time the cremation will take place so you can be thinking about it.

What happens if a death occurs at night?

The Celebration of Life urgent care team (COL) are available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. To organise an urgent collection, simply give us a call - we're always here to help.

How long does a direct cremation take?

Once the death has been registered, the collection from hospital will then take place within 5 working days (a collection from a private address will take place straight away on the day the death occurs), we will then notify you of the cremation date and time a few days in advance. After the cremation date, we will be in touch within 21 days to arrange the hand return of ashes. If you need the process to be completed quicker, please speak to our team.

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