End of Life Choices

Planning for the end of your life is not an easy thing to do. Many people find it difficult to talk about dying with their loved ones, and it is easy to put off the conversation. 

However, starting to put some basic plans into place, or simply having a conversation with your loved ones can be a big relief. There are several things to think about – making a will, talking about your preferred option for your funeral, such as whether you want a cremation or burial and how you would like your life to be commemorated / remembered.

If appropriate, you may then want to either record your wishes with one of our ‘My Funeral Wishes’ pre-arrangement forms or take out a pre-paid funeral plan to pay towards the cost of your funeral. 

”Doing things for others is such a special art, and it deserves a “thank you” directly from the heart. Thank you so much for making things easier for us over the past few weeks. We really appreciate your help, kindness and guidance.

June McCulloch & Jean Rankin

Further Information

Pre-Paid Funeral Plans

A funeral plan is an easy way to arrange the funeral you want in advance. A plan allows you to specify your wishes and pay for the funeral director’s services included in your plan. As customers often tell us, that can bring peace of mind to you and your family. A plan from Golden Charter also includes an allowance towards third party costs. These are essential, non-funeral director services such as the cremation or burial fees, plus the minister or officiant’s fee to perform the service. The value of the allowance included in your plan may grow over time. There will only be more to pay at the time of the funeral if the third party costs exceed the allowance when you buy your plan, or if the costs increase by more than the growth of your plan.

At Porteous Family Funeral Directors, we work in partnership with Golden Charter to provide you with a simple way to plan ahead. As one of the UK’s largest funeral plan providers1, Golden Charter has helped over 1 million people to plan ahead2, so we’re completely confident in offering their plans to you.

Everyone has different needs when it comes to funeral planning, so we make sure the plans we offer are as flexible as possible. When you get in touch, we’ll be happy to discuss your funeral requirements and tailor a plan to suit you. Rest assured a plan from Golden Charter is available to all UK residents, regardless of age or state of health.

Would you like to know more information about how a Golden Charter funeral plan could work for you? We can provide you with all of the information you need to make an informed decision for you and your family, so get in touch today!

1Based on a Golden Charter analysis and independent research of the funeral plan market size as at December 2024.

2Correct at July 2025.

Mark Porteous Funeral Directors Limited and Porteous Funeral Directors Midlothian Limited trading as Porteous Family Funeral Directors  is an appointed representative of Golden Charter Limited trading as Golden Charter Funeral Plans which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FRN:965279).

My Funeral Wishes

‘My Funeral Wishes’ is a free service and provides an opportunity for you to record your wishes for your funeral in as much or as little detail as you wish.  You can either fill in the form at home yourself or meet with one of our funeral arrangers or funeral directors in the funeral home nearest to you who will discuss your choices and fill in the form with you.

We will then create a document that summarises the choices you have made and which we will keep on file. We will provide you with as many copies as you need for yourself and your representatives.

We can also provide you with an estimate of the current costs of the funeral for planning purposes. However, remember that these costs will continue to increase over time.