Welcome to WILLIAMSON BROTHERS Family Funeral Directors
Williamson Brothers Family Funeral Directors of Birches Head have been serving the families of Stoke-on-Trent, North Staffordshire since it was established in 1927.
Five generations of the Williamson family have been privileged to develop a reputation for a caring, personal and professional service and remain one of only a few independent family-run funeral directors in the North Staffordshire area.
ABOUT US
The distinguished and long established firm of Williamson Brothers, Funeral Directors of Birches Head, which spans five generations, prides itself on remaining one of only a few family firms of Funeral Directors in North Staffordshire.
Williamson Brothers was founded in 1927 by Frederick Williamson, a local baker, who named the firm after his two sons, George and Cyril Williamson. Fred was a well-known and respected character in the area, delivering bread by a horse drawn van. He created quite a stir when he became the first baker in the Potteries to deliver bread in a Model-T Ford van. When he became a Funeral Director he originally used a horse-drawn hearse. Years later, he broke new ground once more by being one of the first to replace his horse-drawn hearse with a motorised one. Following Fred's death in 1957, his sons- Cyril and George- then took over the business.
In 1958, having completed his National Service, George's son Graham entered the family business. His determination and passion for motor vehicles enabled the company to grow and develop. After years of gradually improving the funeral fleet, in 1982 the company took a significant step forward as they invested in their first brand new hearse and limousines, being the first company in Stoke on Trent to do so. Since then, under the ownership of Graham and his wife Cynthia, the company has expanded further and continues to replace its fleets on a regular basis.
During 1986, in order to maintain and improve the level of service available, a new funeral home, Birch House, was built. Following this, further expansion took place in 2008 to provide larger and better facilities and additional office space. Most recently, in 2014, a visitor’s car park was completed, directly opposite Birch House.
Today, Graham and Cynthia's son Robert, who began working within the company in 1979, and his wife Lesley manage the business, making them the fourth generation, continuing the traditions of the company. They are supported by their son James, who joined the company in 2016 having gained a first class honours degree at Loughborough University. The Williamson Family continue to be supported by a dedicated team of staff who have served the company over many years and offer a wealth of knowledge, expertise and experience.
OUR ROLE AS A FUNERAL DIRECTOR
Arranging a funeral can be something that relatives embark upon with an amount of uncertainty and apprehension. Our role as a funeral director is to make arrangements on the family's behalf, to discuss any personal requests and to offer help and advice. This meeting can take place at Birch House but usually it will be in the familiar surroundings of your own home.
A funeral is a very important event. It brings together family members, friends, neighbours, work colleagues and sometimes, the wider community, all focusing on one person’s life. People attend the funeral to pay their respects and to say their “good-byes”. In order to make the funeral a personal tribute and a fitting farewell, some major decisions will need to be made.
One of the first decisions is where the service will take place. This could be in a church, at the crematorium or at the cemetery. A non-religious funeral service is an option preferred by some families, often led by a civil celebrant or humanist, and this is something that we can advise and arrange. Usually, the minister or celebrant conducting the service will meet with the family to help discuss the details and content of the service. You would need to give some consideration to the style of service required and whether any hymns are to be sung, music to be played or readings to be given. To go alongside this, we can work with our printers to design an order of service. These can be personalised with images and photographs and make a lovely keepsake of the day for those attending.
We fully appreciate the importance of the vehicles used to take someone on their final journey and are proud to offer you our prestigious fleet of dark burgundy XJ Jaguar hearses & limousines, which combine both elegance and luxury. Alternatively, for something more traditional, we can provide our 1968 Austin Princess hearse accompanied by our black and burgundy Rolls Royce Wraith, or arrange for a horse-drawn hearse to take your loved one to their final resting place- a reminder of days gone by
Flowers are another important aspect of a funeral, adding a touch of colour and warmth, and of course consideration must be given to the type of coffin desired.
Of course, careful consideration must be given to the type of coffin desired. A range of traditional coffins and caskets are available which are hand finished and of the highest quality. It is also possible to arrange for coffins of varying colour and design. Or, for some families, an environmentally friendly coffin, hand crafted in willow, bamboo, or sea grass, may be the preferred option. A number of these options are displayed in our showroom at Birch House to help support you in making your choice.
Once we have your loved one in our care and started to make arrangements for the funeral, we prepare them for their final journey, including dressing them. This might be an outfit of their own clothing that you have chosen or could be a gown from our selection. Some people find comfort in visiting our Chapel of Rest for a private goodbye before the service; others prefer to reflect on memories of happier times. Whichever you feel is right for you, we can help to guide and support you.
If you choose to have a cremation, thought needs to be given to the final resting place for the cremated remains. All crematoriums have different options which we can talk you through, or you might prefer to bring them home or scatter them somewhere which has a special meaning. Whatever you decide, we provide a range of urns and keepsakes to suit your decision, many of which are on display in our showroom at Birch House.
Whatever your wishes, we at Williamson Brothers, Funeral Directors of Birches Head, will carry them out to the best of our ability.
PRE-PAID FUNERAL PLANS
About our pre-paid funeral plans
Planning ahead for your funeral is one of the most thoughtful and caring things you can do. Some people never get round to discussing funeral wishes with their loved ones, which can lead to all sorts of worry and anxiety when the time comes.
Taking out a funeral plan is a simple and straightforward way to remove this worry, and it can provide real financial benefits too. Some of the other benefits include:
Pre-arrange the details of your funeral and include any special wishes
Make financial provision for your funeral
Choose your funeral director in advance
Ensure your family has access to expert help and advice at a difficult time
What’s more, there are no complicated medical forms to complete.
Our plans cover our costs (as specified in the plan paperwork) as long as we carry out the funeral and your requirements don’t change. You can also make a contribution towards third party costs, such as the cremation fees. These costs are outside of our control.
For more information, please download our funeral plans brochure
Financial security
We aim to provide outstanding financial security for your money. All funeral plan pre-payments are held securely in individual whole of life assurance policies for your peace of mind.
Backed by a trusted, national provider
Our funeral plans are provided by Ecclesiastical Planning Services Limited, which is part of a specialist, UK- based financial services group.
Flexible payment options
You can choose to pay for your funeral plan by lump sum or in instalments. There is an additional cost for paying over two or more years and eligibility criteria applies.
Terms and Conditions apply to funeral plans – please ask us if you have any questions.
- Independent Family Run Funeral Directors
- Williamson Brothers was founded in 1927
- Wealth of knowledge
- Expertise and experience
- Personal requests in our offices or at your home
- Music arrangements
