One week to go: Take part in Co-op’s biggest ever survey into death

07 June 2018

• Co-op’s biggest ever survey into death, dying and bereavement is set to close on 14th June
• Almost 30,000 people have completed the survey
• Co-op aims to use the results to drive social change

Co-op is calling on the nation to take part in its biggest ever survey into death, dying and bereavement as it seeks to lead the way in tackling the taboo around this subject, uncovering what stops the nation from talking about these important topics.

Supported by a number of national charities linked to death and later life, Co-op is urging more to take part with just one more week until it closes. The survey has already been completed by almost 30,000 people, exceeding the business’ initial expectations.

Since launching over four weeks ago, the survey has been gathering opinions from consumers, funeral directors and Co-op members – asking them to give their views on death, bereavement and funeral wishes via coop.co.uk/survey*.

Co-op is also involving and working with charities, including British Red Cross, Child Bereavement UK, Dying Matters, Remember a Charity, Sue Ryder and The Children’s Funeral Charity.

Preliminary research by the business found that over 40%** of adults felt unable to talk about and express their feelings when they lost a loved one. The survey seeks to establish what stops the nation from talking about death and dying, in addition to how people deal with bereavement. The UK’s leading funeral director, alongside Co-op’s Legal Services business, plans to work closely with charitable groups, the Government and opinion formers nationally, in addition to communities locally, to identify solutions to this issue.

The business is also aiming to drive genuine social change to how we approach the subject of death, having found that almost a quarter of adults (22.1%) admit they’ve kept quiet when the subject has been raised.

Robert MacLachlan, Managing Director of Co-op Funeralcare and Life Planning, said:

“Talking about death is a huge national issue yet we’ve been overwhelmed by the support and participation seen so far. As people share their views with us, they are taking an important step in helping us tackle this great taboo.

‘’With just one week left to participate in the survey, we’re urging people to take this opportunity to be involved. The results will then guide us in our ambitions to drive true social change.’’

Ends

Notes to editors:
*Visit coop.co.uk/survey. The survey is being conducted by YouGov.

**Research conducted by Opinion Matters on behalf of Co-op Funeralcare with 2,000 UK adults in April 2018.

For further information please contact:

Alex Wilson
Alexandra.wilson1@coop.co.uk
07540 641368

Sarah Pyatt
Sarah.Pyatt@coop.co.uk
07850 002 312

Follow us @CoopUKPress

About Co-op:

The Co-op is one of the world’s largest consumer co-operatives with interests across food, funerals, insurance, legal services and an online electrical store. It has a clear purpose of championing a better way of doing business for you and your communities. Owned by millions of UK consumers, the Co-op operates 2,500 food stores and over 1,000 funeral homes, with more than 63,000 colleagues and an annual revenue of £9.5bn.

The Co-op and British Red Cross have been working in partnership since 2015 to highlight and tackle loneliness and social isolation across the UK. The partnership’s ‘Trapped in a Bubble’ research identified bereavement as a life-changing event that can trigger loneliness.