The RAF Benevolent Fund has been providing vital and wide-ranging support to people who served or did their National Service in the RAF for 100 years. But too many have fallen off the radar. They may be your friends or relatives, and they may need support, so please help us find them. 

Join The Search. Change A Life.

The RAF Benevolent Fund wants to get thousands of RAF veterans and their families back on the radar. We estimate that as many as 100,000 are in urgent need of what could be life-changing support.

We all have a last chance to do our duty, just as they did theirs, by giving them and their families the support they deserve.

Please get in touch with us today if you know someone who is in need of help or to request help for yourself. Alternatively, you can call the helpline number on 0300 102 1919.

Please join us on Saturday July 13th for our Open Day!

There will be various activities and talks hosted throughout the day, from crematorium tours to genealogy demonstrations.  Our grounds & chapels including the Extra Mural Chapel will be open to the general public so they can see what Woodvale has to offer.

Our vision is a day that will help to dispel the myths surrounding death and cremation, and also hopefully raise our profile amongst the residents of Brighton and Hove . We are confident that new visitors to Woodvale will be surprised & inspired by our lovely setting, and hope the experience will be a positive one for our visitors.

Woodvale is a great source of pride for the city and we want to share it with the community, therefore the day is free and open to all.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Directions: Woodvale’s main entrance is located about a mile from the city centre, on the Lewes Road (A270), Brighton, on the side of the road headed towards the city centre, please use the main entrance gate. There is sign-posting from all directions. A useful landmark near the main entrance is a yellow painted public house called The Gladstone and there is a BP garage opposite.

With Fathers Day fast approaching here in the UK we turn our thoughts to the fathers who are no longer with us. Dads who we desperately miss, Dads for whom death was a blessed release, Dads who were not biological Dads but acted as if they were.
Every father had their story to tell, their wisdom and love to impart and here at Bungards we join you in memory of your loved one and offer you our support and solidarity at what can be a really difficult time of year for some people.
If you are passing our office in Sackville Road please do come in and take a seed card to plant in memory of your loved one, and each year watch it bloom and grow into a beautiful tribute to your Dad.

Golden Charter Investigates for us.

We’re well used to thinking about what should happen to the physical things we will leave behind when we are gone. From homes to personal keepsakes, people are very familiar with idea of a preparing a will that states how their property will be distributed after their passing.
But what about what you leave behind in the virtual world?
Facebook, with almost 2 billion users worldwide, will be used regularly by 32.5 million people in the UK next year, according to the statistics portal Statista. That means almost half the UK population has a Facebook account. Based on Facebook’s user statistics in 2018, researchers have predicted the number of dead users could reach at least 1.4 billion or potentially as high as 4.9 billion by the end of the century.
Add in our profiles on all the other social media platforms, from Pinterest to Twitter, and that’s a huge digital legacy for the people of the UK to leave behind.

“Who can access your account, emails, photo albums, music files, who gets the passwords, what happens to all your images and videos?” asks Dr Mark Traubert, a palliative care doctor and expert in social media and end of life planning. He makes the point that a well prepared social media presence could last long into the future and be a way for your ancestors to connect with their past. But he advises having a Social Media Will to specify your wishes for your online profiles after you die. This avoids arguments between family members, some of whom may want your accounts deleted, other who may want them kept as a form of memorial.
Dr. Taubert is on the advisory board of ‘DeadSocial’ a free service that lets you write and schedule messages that will be pushed to your social media accounts after your death. Users set up a profile, write their messages and appoint an ‘executor’ to tell DeadSocial that you’ve passed and activate your messages. The Deadsocial service has limited enrolment, but does provide advice on digital legacy planning and guides on dealing with specific social media accounts, either ahead of your own death or after the passing of a loved one.

Not having a properly planned digital legacy can cause your family upset. Automated messages sent around birthdays or anniversaries are one of the most obvious examples of emotional upset, but continuing subscriptions to music or movie services can also cause financial stress.
Stopping ongoing activity is important, but so is preserving your digital assets. Those that could be lost or destroyed without a plan in place include photos and videos, mementoes that your family will never be able to replace.

One of the biggest challenges for your family will be knowing exactly what accounts you have and how to access them. Preparing a list of your accounts is a very important starting point which can be added to your ‘Rest in Peace’ folder. List web addresses and usernames but keep the passwords separately, maybe with a family member.
Beyond drawing up your list, start thinking about how you want to be remembered online, do you want your full profiles to outlive you, do you want to leave behind just one last Tweet, or do you want to disappear altogether. All are possible, but they’ll all need some planning.

We are very pleased to announce that Charlotte has joined our Aftercare team and is already well under way with referrals from our families.
Charlotte specialises in Bereavement and Loss and has been helping people in Brighton & Hove through The Palmeria Practice and the Brighton Therapy Rooms where she sees clients. She has previously worked for the NHS and she currently helps provide essential support for a local community counselling service based here in Brighton.
Charlotte is a BACP registered counsellor and holds a Postgraduate Diploma in Humanistic Psychotherapeutic Counselling from Brighton University. She is a humanistic counsellor and her practice draws on Person Centred, Existential and Gestalt theory.
This essentially means that she works in a warm empathic way, seeking to understand how bereavement has affected you and to support you through your own unique grieving process. We are glad Charlotte has joined our Aftercare team, and look forward to a long lasting professional relationship with her supporting our families.

In keeping with our long held tradition of supporting local charities we are pleased to announce that for 2019 we will be proudly supporting the ‘Food & Friendship Luncheon Club’ based at Hove Methodist Church in Portland Road Hove.
We are keen to maintain our close links within the Community and this worthy charity is one close to our hearts.
The Luncheon Club provides older people and adults with learning disabilities with a home cooked lunch and friendship twice a week, and has been proudly doing so since 1996!
27 volunteers work hard every week to ensure there is transport available for those who need it, lovely hot food and a friendly atmosphere for the guests to enjoy and we cant wait to get stuck in and help out at this worthy club.
Please go to https://www.peopleshealthtrust.org.uk/news/news-stories/hove-luncheon-club to watch a short film about the Food & Friendship Luncheon Club, or you can visit their Facebook page for more information or take a look at their website http://foodandfriendship.org.uk/

After supporting the foodbank for an extended 18 months, yesterday was the last day that Richard from Bungard Funeral Directors helped as a volunteer and presented Anna Bromwich, the Food Bank coordinator with a cheque for £750.

The food bank is an independently run Foodbank, with a management committee made up of volunteers from two local churches.

Their aim is to help individuals and families who are in urgent need, access short term support – in terms of food, but also money advice, energy advice and community support.

Clients must be referred to the Foodbank by a professional organisation, for example a Health Visitor, Social Worker, Housing Officer or Advice agency.

Clients are offered the opportunity to obtain money advice from Moneyadviceplus, and energy advice from BHESCo.  The mental health charity MIND visit the Foodbank once a month to offer support and advice.

The cheque was presented by Richard Whittle of Bungard Funeral Directors, Brighton & Hove’s oldest independent family funeral directors.  The business was founded in 1906 by Richard’s great, great grandfather and has become a cornerstone of Hove for over 110 years.

Richard was delighted that they were able to raise so much money. “We have really enjoyed supporting and volunteering at the Food Bank and even extended the support for a further six months. Yesterday was particularly moving because there were so many people in need but also a huge number of donations being brought in from those wanting to help people have the best possible Christmas. We will definitely remain a friend of the Foodbank and continue to support them.”

To find out more about them please go to http://www.hangletonfoodbank.org/

The Martlets plays a vital role in helping people to live life as fully as they can, right up until the end. Through expert clinical care provided by highly skilled and experienced doctors and nurses, they ensure that wherever possible peace, respect and dignity is retained – it is a very simple and very human ethos. Emma Knight, Head of Corporate and Major Donor Giving was presented with a cheque for £595 to support their many activities.

The cheque was presented by Richard Whittle of Bungard Funeral Directors, Brighton & Hove’s oldest independent family funeral directors.  The business was founded in 1906 by Richard’s great, great grandfather and has become a cornerstone of Hove for over 110 years.

Richard was delighted that they were able to raise so much money. “We chose the Martlets to be our Charity of the Year because they provide such an invaluable support to the area. They care for people across our local community, yet the hospice is not part of the NHS. Financial support from individuals and community groups is essential for them to continue providing these vital hospice services. The Martlets is your local hospice and they do need your support.”

To find out more about them then please go to http://www.the martlets.org.uk

A lovely article in the Argus today 01/11/2016

ONE of the oldest established businesses in Sussex is celebrating its 110th anniversary in 2016.

There has been five generations at the helm of Bungard Funeral Directors, who are based in Sackville Road, Hove.

And current MD Richard Whittle is hoping there may be a sixth in the future with his son being born earlier this year.

Richard said: “We are very proud of our company, of what we have achieved over the years and what we continue to offer the community.
“We may be 110 years old this year but we certainly aim to continue for many years to come.”
It all began in April 1906 when Oliver Bungard, a monumental mason, conducted the first funeral for the company..
His two eldest sons, James Oliver and Ernest, joined the firm on leaving school and when their father died in 1919 they carried on as partners until Ernest died in 1928.
Ernest’s place was taken by younger brother and youngest son of James Oliver, Hervey Arnold, in 1922.
In 1930 they employed their brother-in-law William Wilmer who worked for the firm for the next 30 years.
James Oliver died in 1941 at which point the business was run under the direction of Hervey until his retirement in 1971.
In 1939 Leonard Whittle – who married one of James Oliver’s twin daughters, Margaret – joined the firm.
During the war Margaret took Leonard’s place in the business.
Rupert Hervey Bungard, Hervey Arnold’s son, joined the firm in 1970 and became a director of the firm in 1971.  Rupert retired in 2000 after 30 years at the family firm.
The current director team was established when James Whittle joined in 1968 and became Joint Managing Director with Rupert when Leonard Whittle.
James retired after 44 years with the company in 2012 and handed the reins over to his youngest son Richard as the fifth generation of the Bungard family lineage to join in 2011.
Richard says he has joined at a particularly exciting time for the business.
He said: “My key challenge is to ensure that the business and also importantly Bungard Funeral Directors location   meets modern customer needs but preserves the history and tradition of the property and the family.
“In the early years of the business a Chapel of Rest was not required as families usually laid their deceased at home.
“As this tradition changes the need for a chapel became apparent and therefore renovation took place to include a chapel.
“Since I joined the entire shop front and chapel have been updated with a modern clean look and soon the shop signage will reflect the new modern branding that has also been introduced with our new website.”
Bungard Funeral Directors has worked with the local community for five generations, two world wars and over 100 years and remains committed to helping local families, charities and businesses to the best of their ability.
Richard and his wife Amie welcomed a possible sixth generation this year with the birth of their son Luke in May.
Richard hopes that one day his son will be inspired to carry on the family business one day.
He said: “We are 110 years old, we are still the original family and we believe in serving the community in the best possible way we can.”

The Carers Centre, is a charity that is passionate about looking after Carers in Brighton and Hove. The Carers Centre offers different kinds of services working with and supporting young and adult carers in the city. Chris Lau, the Director of the Chairty was presented with a cheque for £480 to support their many activities.

The cheque was presented by Richard Whittle of Bungard & Sons Limited, Brighton & Hove’s oldest independent family funeral directors.  The business was founded in 1906 by Richard’s great, great grandfather and has become a cornerstone of Hove for over 110 years.

Richard was delighted to receive in return a card created by the children at the Centre and said “We chose the Carer’s Centre to be our charity of the year because we have found a lot of crossover with the families that we help and support. Many people do not realise they have been carer’s for years and it is important to help make people aware and that their is support for them out there. With all this they truly benefit the local community and that is something we want to support.”

To find out more and to help support a local charity go to http://www.thecarerscentre.org/