CDAS wants funeral directors’ input into new Foundation Degree
Following the signing of a unique sponsorship arrangement with the National Association of Funeral Directors (NAFD) in February, the Centre for Death & Society (CDAS) at the University of Bath is working with the Association to develop a foundation degree for funeral directors.
The degree will build upon the training already provided by the NAFD and will comprise a combination of practical, work-based learning and academic teaching and research. Students will look at the social aspects of death, dying and bereavement (including issues of ritual and ceremony) from a number of perspectives.
Dr Glennys Howarth, Director of the Centre for Death & Society, said: “Increasingly, funeral directors are at the face of public understanding and expectations around death, funeral rituals and bereavement. Working with the National Association of Funeral Directors to develop this foundation degree will strengthen our understanding of these issues and assist us in providing training for practitioners in the sector.”
In order to enable CDAS to develop the programme to meet the needs of the profession, funeral directors are being asked for their views on its overall design and content.
Alan Slater, Chief Executive Officer of the NAFD, said: “We are delighted to be working closely with the Centre for Death & Society to foster greater understanding of the funeral director’s role and to support initiatives which will promote professional development within the sector.
“We look forward to hearing funeral directors’ views on what they would like to see in the new degree, which topics should be introduced over and above those already included in the Diploma in Funeral Directing and whether some Diploma topics should be addressed in greater depth.”
CDAS canvassed opinion at the National Funeral Exhibition (June 15-17) by setting up a short survey. Funeral directors can still take part in the survey via the CDAS website at https://www.survey.bath.ac.uk/funeral – it is completed anonymously and takes around 15 minutes.
NAFD members can access the survey, which is scheduled to close on July 31, by logging into the Members section of the NAFD website, www.nafd.org.uk