A village vicar is attempting to overcome one of society's last great taboos by getting parishioners to plan their own funeral services.

And the Reverend Peter Sutcliffe hopes that by making a record of their final wishes, people will have the funeral they want and spare grieving relatives from having to second guess what they think their loved ones would have wanted.

The Burley-in-Wharfedale vicar has produced a special sheet, available from St Mary's parish office, detailing issues he thinks people should think about ahead of their deaths.

He is asking people to think about whether burial or cremation, where they want their funeral to take place, which songs or hymns should be sung and who should conduct the service.

Rev Sutcliffe, 41, who is married with two teenage children, said: "I've left some clear instructions with my will as to what arrangements I would like at my own funeral.

"I've chosen a couple of hymns which are particularly important to me; I definitely want to be cremated and I'd like my funeral to take the form of a communion service.''

He said: "Now and then I become involved in taking funeral services where the family of the person who has died have no clear idea of what kind of service their relative really wanted.

"Often this is through no fault of their own - either it hasn't been discussed, nothing has been written down or family members are at odds as to what should happen - but in situations like those it's sometimes very hard to second guess what would be appropriate and I often end up feeling I could have taken a better service if only I'd had more to go on.''

He added: "Death is still one of the great taboos and something people find very difficult to talk about but there are good reasons why talking about a funeral with someone while they're still alive can be a very good thing to do.

"A funeral service doesn't have to be a dry, dreary occasion - it can be a great celebration of someone's life but in order for it to be that it needs some careful thought and planning.''

The Reverend Sutcliffe, who conducts some 20 to 30 funerals a year, added: "I think some people will find the whole idea of thinking about their funeral service before it happens quite distasteful but I hope others will be able to see that there's some mileage in it.''

A spokesman for Cruse in Craven, the branch of the bereavement counselling service which covers Burley, said: "It wouldn't do for everyone and some people just wouldn't want to know but on the whole we'd be very much in favour of the idea. More and more people are paying for their funerals in advance so why not plan them in advance as well?

"Quite often people we talk to say the funeral could have been done better. It's not a good time to be making decisions and this would give families and clergymen something to work on.''

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