ABOUT US

Peace Funerals was founded in 1996 by John and Mary Mallatratt. Neither of them had previously worked in funeral directing, Mary having previously pursued successful careers in nursing and social care, and John in education. But from the experience of arranging the funerals of people close to them, they felt that there was scope for making funerals much more personal and appropriate, and the process for families much better.

They began providing funeral directing services from their home in central Lancashire, but soon acquired premises in south-east Sheffield which is the main base for Peace Funerals today. They also acquired some land at Ulley, in the countryside to the south of Rotherham, and this has been turned into the South Yorkshire Woodland Burial Ground.

Recognition of the distinctiveness of Peace Funerals’ work was achieved quite rapidly. Within its first five years the company had received a number awards from the Natural Death Centre including a national award for extending choice and support to families, as well as Regional Best Funeral Directors and Regional Best Woodland Burial Ground (for the Golden Valley site, which is managed by Peace Funerals). Since 2004, Peace Funerals have held the title of ‘Best Funeral Directors in the UK’ continuously.

Peace Funerals now has a small, extremely dedicated, caring, and professional team of staff motivated to improve the funeral experiences of families. They provide all the services that you would expect from a funeral director as well as an extensive range of additional options. But most importantly, the ethos of aiming to enable families to feel in control of the funeral arrangements of a loved one and to create something that is personal and appropriate remains paramount.