Arrange a Funeral
Someone has died
Losing a loved one is an emotional and challenging time. Here, you’ll find essential information to guide you through the next steps.
What to Expect
First Call
Speak to a Funeral Advice Line consultant 24 hours a day, 365 days a year
Planning
You will meet with the Funeral Planner and begin arranging the funeral
Personalisation
Celebrate the life of your loved one and honour them for who they truly were
Service
Our staff will conduct the service with unrivalled professionalism and care
Our Deepest Condolences
Tobin Brothers Funerals aim to guide you through the funeral process with expertise and care.
Funerals are a deeply personal event which are as individual as the person being remembered. We have done our best to breakdown this process into 5 stages for you to familiarise yourself with and refer to at any time.
1.Immediate Steps
2.Before We Meet
3.Planning a Funeral
4.The Day of the Funeral
5.After the Service
1.Immediate Steps
Immediate Steps
If someone has died, please call the Tobin Brothers Funeral Advice Line on 13 19 34 and one of our experienced consultants will be able to provide advice tailored to your specific situation.
The immediate steps following a death will differ case by case, depending on the circumstances of their death and other factors, but we are here to guide you through the process every step of the way. You can contact us at any time for assistance and advice.
- If the death occurs at a nursing home, hospital, or other care environment, there will be protocol in place and staff will notify a doctor to confirm the cause of death. Staff should also be informed if Tobin Brothers Funerals is the nominated Funeral Director.
- If an expected death occurs at home, a medically qualified person, such as a GP, Palliative Care Nurse, Ambulance Officer or Locum, can be contacted to verify the death when you are ready.
- An unexpected death, whether it occurs at home or elsewhere, will need to be reported to the police and Coroner. We can assist you with information and updates regarding the Coronial process even while your loved one is in their care.
When you are ready, we can organise the transfer of your loved one into our care and schedule a meeting to discuss funeral arrangements.
Should you wish to familiarise yourself with a better understanding of what occurs when we transfer someone into our care, you can download a copy of our ‘In Our Care’ brochure.
It is a good idea to try to locate a Will, any prepaid funeral plans, Cemetery or Cremation Memorial deeds, and any other important documentation as soon as you are able to as this may assist you throughout the process.
Call our Funeral Advice Line for 24-hour assistance.
Action Points
- Contact a medical professional to certify the death.
- Call the Funeral Advice Line to arrange transfer of the deceased into our care.
- Call loved ones for support.
- Download the Family Checklist to use as a guide to navigate this journey.
- Locate any important files, such as a Funeral Plan, Will or other documents.
- When ready, make arrangements to meet with one of our Funeral Planners.
Helpful Contacts
Tobin Brothers Funeral Advice Line: 13 19 34
Emergency Services: 000
Police Assistance Line: 131 444
Coroner’s Court Victoria: 1300 309 519
Grief Australia: 1800 642 066
Supreme Court of Victoria: (03) 8600 2000
Consular Emergency Centre +61 2 6261 3305
Palliative Care Advice Service 1800 360 000
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2.Before We Meet
Before the Arrangement
The loss of a loved one can be incredibly challenging and navigating the practicalities that follow can feel overwhelming.
Tobin Brothers Funerals aims to guide families through this process with compassion and understanding, every step of the way, to help you honour your loved one with respect and dignity.
Once your arrangement meeting has been scheduled, you will receive an email to assist you in preparing for the meeting.
To prepare for the arrangement meeting, you and your family should discuss the following items:
- Whether the funeral will be a burial or cremation.
- The clothing you wish for your loved one to wear.
- Consider the elements your family might like incorporated into the service, such as religious or cultural customs, life symbols, music, floral arrangements, etc. See our personalisation page for more information.
- Give some thought to the wording of press notices you may wish to place in the newspaper. We provide a free Tribute page on our website, so consider whether you need to publish a Funeral Notice in addition to this.
- Consider preferences for the date, time and venue for the funeral.
- Fill out details for the Registration of Death form. It is okay to write ‘unknown’ for answers you are unsure of. Our staff will help you to complete and submit this form.
- Select a recent photo of your loved one, or a collection of photos, to bring to the arrangement.
If you are uncertain of anything or would like more information to help you make decisions, please contact us at any time.
To make these and various other important elements easier to address you might like to download and fill out a copy of our Statement of Wishes booklet.
You can also make use of our Memory Maker app for personalisation options and cost estimates. Memory Maker is available for free download on all mobile devices from the Apple App Store or Google Play.
Call us for 24-hour assistance.
Action Points
- Download the Statement of Wishes booklet to help you prepare information ahead of your arrangement meeting.
- Download the Memory Maker App to help guide you in personalising a funeral service and
estimating costs. - Consider all the elements you may want as part of the service.
- Consider preferences for date, time and venues.
- Decide on clothing for your loved one and set them aside.
- Consider wording for death and funeral notices or our online Tribute page.
- Start to gather photographs if you would like an audiovisual presentation at the service.
- See our personalisation pages for more information.
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3.Planning a Funeral
At the Arrangement Meeting
During the initial arrangement meeting, our Funeral Planner will work with you to organise all of the many practical and celebratory aspects of the funeral.
Tobin Brothers is here to guide you in creating a respectful funeral service to honour your loved one, providing in-depth guidance and facilitating your precise wishes.
The arrangement meeting is up to 2 hours in duration and generally covers the following decisions:
- When and where will the funeral be held?
- Will vehicles be required?
- Will there be a viewing?
- Will music be incorporated into the service?
- Would you like our Memories and Tributes team to produce printed items or an Audio Visual presentation?
- Will there be press notices or an online Tribute Page on our website?
- Will there be a gathering afterwards?
During the arrangement meeting, you can expect to fill out some legal paperwork with the help of your Funeral Planner.
You will also discuss any personal preferences for the service, including cultural, linguistic, or religious elements, as well any family-specific needs or wishes you may have.
Once we have covered the core service aspects, such as the locations and logistics, we will go over personalisation elements, such as music, memorial books, flowers, print materials and webcasting.
For AV presentations and print materials, our Memories and Tributes team, made up of specialist graphic designers, will contact you after the arrangement meeting to discuss your design requirements.
Tea and coffee refreshments are included in our professional service fee when you hold a service at one of our Tobin Brothers chapels. However, our catering arm, Diamond Celebrations, can provide more substantial finger food and catering for external venues. Your Funeral Planner can provide you with a menu should you wish to consider catering.
During the meeting, we make a record of the decisions and choices made, complete any other legal and administrative documents, and provide you with a detailed estimate of the costs associated with the funeral.
There are often a few follow up phone calls to confirm or update details, and on rare occasions, we may require a follow up meeting to confirm details.
The only limits to our ability to personalise your loved one’s service is the law and your imagination.
Call us for 24-hour assistance.
Action Points
- Be sure to discuss any questions or concerns you have with your Funeral Planner.
- Please try to remain contactable to our teams.
- Our Memories and Tributes team will reach out to you after the arrangement meeting to plan personalised printed products or discuss audio-visual requirements.
- Please provide any information requested by your Funeral Planner in a timely manner.
- Call our Funeral Advice Line if you need anything at all in the meantime.
Helpful Contacts
Tobin Brothers Funeral Advice Line: 13 19 34
Memories and Tributes: (03) 9354 4178
Births, Deaths, and Marriages: 1300 369 367
Grief Australia: 1800 642 066
Griefline: 1300 845 745
Lifeline Australia: 131 114
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4.The Day of the Funeral
The Day of the Service
Funerals are an important step in the grieving process after the loss of a loved one. They allow us to commemorate and honour the deceased, and come together for support.
Many cultures have ceremonies for the passing of a loved one, they each differ in their rites and rituals, just as they do from individual to individual.
In planning a service, we encourage our clients to include elements which are meaningful to them such as:
- Writing messages onto the coffin or casket
- Dove release
- Decorating the service space with memory items*
- Candle lighting
- Champagne toast
- A special colour theme
- Video tributes
*permission should be sought if not in a Tobin Brothers venue
Our experienced Funeral Conductor and team are responsible for coordinating all aspects of the service, care and safety on the day of the funeral. Our teams’ primary focus is to ensure the service runs smoothly and that the day is as comfortable for you and your family as possible.
If the service is being webcast, those viewing can access the live-stream through the Tribute Page created for your loved one. The link will have been provided to you following the arrangement. Our Funeral Advice Line are able to provide immediate assistance to anyone having difficulty accessing the webcast. Phone 13 19 34.
It is important that the person whose life we are celebrating is honoured with respect and authenticity, which is why Tobin Brothers specialises in providing a service tailored to the needs and preferences of your family.
Call us for 24-hour assistance.
Action Points
- Speak to any of our team if you have any concerns or special requests on the day.
- If you have chosen to live-stream the funeral, loved ones can access the link via the Tribute Page.
- Have a support person with you throughout the day and be sure to let our team know if you have any requests at all.
- Consider nominating someone to supervise any children attending.
- Take your time, greet friends and family who have come to support you as we work in the background to care for and guide you.
Helpful Contacts
Tobin Brothers Funeral Advice Line: 13 19 34
Services Australia (Medicare, Centrelink, Child Support): 132 300
Births, Deaths, and Marriages: 1300 369 367
Greater Metropolitan Cemeteries Trust: 1300 022 298.
Southern Metropolitan Cemeteries Trust: (03) 8558 8278
Griefline: 1300 845 745
Lifeline Australia: 131 114
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5.After the Service
After the Service
While there is a great deal of emotion leading up to the funeral, there can also be complicated feelings afterward as well as numerous administrative tasks.
Some of our client families describe a sense of relief, while still mourning of course, but there is a sense of achievement in having appropriately honoured their loved one and often a sense of unity and connection with fellow mourners.
Others describe feelings such as loneliness, distress, or discomfort, as they may have been keeping themselves busy with the planning process or the funeral itself has forced them to confront their loss.
It is hard to know how you might feel after the funeral service takes place, so we recommend reaching out for support from family and friends, and accepting any kindness provided by others during this period.
Support groups for the bereaved or engaging the services of trained professionals such as a psychologist or grief counsellor can also help you to accept your loss and learn beneficial coping mechanisms.
We hold various events throughout the year designed to support those who have experienced loss, including our Christmas Remembrance services and Remembering Our Angels services.
Our online Support and Resources may also be helpful.
We generally render our account around 10 days after the service, but you’re welcome to contact our accounts team on (03) 9328 4300 if you have any queries at all.
We are always here to help you if you have any queries or need advice, whether it is days, months, or even years after a funeral.
Call us for 24-hour assistance.
Action Points
- We will register the death and arrange issue of a Death Certificate to the nominated family representative.
- You will receive an invoice for the funeral approximately 10 days after the service.
- Contact the Funeral Advice Line should you need assistance after the funeral.
- See our Support and Resources page for information about coping with loss.
- See our Events Page for Remembrance Services and other Tobin Brothers events that may support you. We will reach out to you with an invitation to our end of year Remembrance Services.
- For further support and information, you can ‘like’ or ‘follow’ our page on Facebook or Instagram.
Helpful Contacts
Tobin Brothers Funeral Advice Line: 13 19 34
Births, Deaths, and Marriages: 1300 369 367
Grief Australia: 1800 642 066
Griefline: 1300 845 745
Lifeline Australia: 131 114
Compassionate Friends: 1300 064 068
Support After Suicide: (03) 9421 7640
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Downloadable Resources
As leaders in the funeral industry, it is our job to help support and educate others in order to make the funeral process as simple as possible for grieving families.
If there is a subject you’d like us to cover, or something you’d like more information on, please let us know by calling our Funeral Advice Line or send us an email request on info@tobinbrothers.com.au.
Our Family Checklist is designed to help families when they need it most. Download the guide for information how to navigate the initial stages of loss.
Trusted Funeral Directors
At Tobin Brothers, our role is to act as a compassionate and reliable advisor, playing an integral role in planning the funeral arrangements of your loved one.
Our caring and professional staff will guide you through the decision making process and help you to create a fitting celebration of your loved one’s life.
We understand just how important it is to say goodbye in your own way, and we advocate for you and your family every step of the way.
Trusted
Since 1934
At Tobin Brothers Funerals,
we have provided dignified and personalised services for our clients for over 90 years.
Australian Family Business
Owned and operated by the Tobin family, we are proud to be an Australian company, based in Victoria.
Personalised Service and Support
We specialise in catering to the needs and preferences of families from all cultures, religions, and backgrounds.Â
Compassion and Integrity
Our team of committed professionals strive to deliver authentic, transparent,
and dignified services.
Our Locations
26 branch locations throughout the Melbourne Metropolitan area, Ballarat, Echuca, Wodonga and Corowa
Our Values
We have seven distinguishing qualities that shine through in all that we do, we refer to these as the 7 C’s:
Our genuine care for those we serveÂ
Our professional competency guidance and expertise
Our commitment to excellence, transparency and integrity
Our cultural sensitivity, respecting our diversity and the unique traditions and beliefs of all
Our desire to be leaders, be innovative and contemporary in the funeral industry
Our active involvement in the community
Our belief that each funeral is a unique celebration of life
★★★★★
The team at Tobin Brothers East Burwood handled the funerals of both my parents beautifully and respectfully. You can organise funeral details or do clothing drop offs at any site which is handy if unable to attend the service site. We had priests as chosen by Tobin Brothers and they have been great. Had some light catering the second time around and the food was all delicious. Great option for a more personal experience. Thank you.
★★★★★
We could not have asked for better, the team at Tobin Brothers East Burwood were very helpful, caring and professional throughout the whole process. On the day of my Mother’s funeral we were more than comfortable with the support and assistance we received from the Tobin staff.
★★★★★
From the time our father passed away to his funeral, Tobin Brothers in East Burwood were fantastic. A big thank you to Judith the funeral planner, Veronica the Celebrant, Mary Anne who looked after us at dads funeral and the team on the day. It went very smoothly and the guests loved the venue and food.
★★★★★
Michelle and the team at Tobin Brothers Burwood organised the funeral for our father who passed away this week. Michelle was beautiful and made the process completely stress free. Thankfully we don't have to organise a funeral every week, but if I did I would use these guys! Highly recommended.
Get in touch...
We can help you create the perfect farewell
If it’s legal, it’s possible. Let us help you create a service that truly reflects and celebrates the life of your loved one.
