East Midlands funeral director facilitates hundreds of thousands in donations for local charity

East Midlands-based award-winning family business A.W. Lymn The Family Funeral Service has helped to raise almost £400,000 for Nottingham Hospitals Charity (NUH) through donations made at its funerals.

Over the last five years, A.W. Lymn has facilitated £392,000 of donations to NUH, which has been used across medical institutions in the local area to help improve patient care.

The sum forms part of a total of £4.5 million collected by the fifth-generation family business between 2018 and 2023 for more than 1,800 local and national charities and causes.

The Sneinton-headquartered funeral directors offers those organising a service the option of asking attendees to make a donation to a charity of their choice, instead of buying flowers.

And with 80 percent of those who use A.W. Lymn now choosing to do so, the switch reflects wider changes in the funeral industry, with over 9 in 10 (92 percent) of funeral directors in the UK noticing trends or changes in the funerals that they’re organising.[1]

The donations made to NUH are given to a range of areas across Nottingham’s hospitals, in line with the wishes of family members – supporting everyone from babies in the Neonatal Unit and young children at Nottingham Children’s Hospital, to adult patients being treated for cancer, stroke and heart disease, right through to end of life care at Hayward House palliative care centre.

Donations across these areas – and many others – have been used for projects such as enhancements to wards and other facilities, specialist medical equipment, and medical research taking place in Nottingham.

Donations in lieu of flowers is just one of the options that allows those who chose A.W. Lymn to tailor a funeral to meet their needs.

Nigel Lymn Rose, fourth generation and Company Chairman at A.W. Lymn, said: “Charity has been a key part of our service at A.W. Lymn for many years, so being able to facilitate hundreds of thousands of pounds of donations for a Nottingham charity is fantastic – and reflects the very ethos of why we do what we do.

“Offering those organising a funeral the choice of donations in lieu of flowers is not only a simple and convenient way for them to support a cause which is close to their hearts, but also pay tribute to the person who has passed away.

“We are continually overwhelmed by the generosity of those who donate, and we hope that we can continue to facilitate these contributions.”

The A.W. Lymn team have also got actively involved in fundraising for NUH in recent years, with directors and staff taking part in the Robin Hood Half Marathon, the Big QMC Abseil and helping to collect Christmas trees as part of NUH’s Christmas Tree Recycling scheme.

Nigel Gregory, Chief Executive at Nottingham Hospitals Charity, said: “We are extremely grateful to the whole team at A.W. Lymn for all of their ongoing support over the years. The team members across all of its branches are always eager to help.

“This is a truly incredible amount, which would not have been possible without the support that A.W. Lymn offers, both to the families it cares for through the funeral process, and to local charities like ours.

“We’d like to give a heartfelt thank you to everyone at A.W. Lymn, and to all the families who have chosen to donate to Nottingham’s hospitals in lieu of flowers at their loved ones’ funerals. You have truly made a big difference to patient care in Nottingham.”

With 28 funeral homes across Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire, and one recently opened in Leicestershire, A.W. Lymn prides itself on offering a high-quality service at an affordable price to the families it has served since 1907.

[1] SunLife Cost of Dying Report 2024: https://www.sunlife.co.uk/funeral-costs/#:~:text=The%20cost%20of%20dying,-The%20'cost%20of&text=2023%20saw%20the%20total%20cost,than%20we%20were