It started with my grandmother on the Isle of Wight.
When my grandfather died, she moved to a small village to be closer to family. The village had little more than a church, a hall, and a post office. But it had something else. A group called Good Companions. Tea, cake, and company once a month.
Every night before the meeting, she’d moan about how she “had to go.” Yet every evening afterwards, she’d tell us everything. Who said what. Who was doing what. And she’d admit she’d rather enjoyed herself.
The excuse to leave the house. The chance to sit with others. That’s what she needed, even when she didn’t know it.
That seed stayed with me. After someone dies, the loneliness that follows can be devastating. CPJ Field was uniquely placed to do something about it. Because the relationship between a funeral director and a family shouldn’t end on the day of the funeral. For many, that’s just the beginning.
In June 2018, I launched Never Alone across CPJ Field’s funeral homes. I was clear from the start about what it was. And what it wasn’t.
Never Alone is not a bereavement group. We signpost to the many fantastic charities whose role that is. We offer a space for anyone feeling lonely or socially isolated, for whatever reason. New to the area. Working from home. Recently bereaved. Or simply needing an excuse to leave the house. No labels. Everyone is welcome.
Every community is different. What succeeds in one village may fall flat in another. Today, Never Alone runs at all 36 CPJ Field funeral homes. Book clubs. Knit and natter groups. Walking groups. Gardening clubs. Lunch clubs. Intergenerational coffee mornings. The Never Alone Community Choir started with four members. Two years later, over 50 people attend regularly.
Local GP surgeries now signpost patients to Never Alone as part of social prescribing. Loneliness and bereavement charities regularly approach us to connect their services. The groups remain free and open to anyone.
I built my career at Shine Communication, a leading consumer PR agency, heading the FMCG team and managing a portfolio of award-winning clients worth over £2 million. Peroni, Bombay Sapphire, Heinz, Wall’s. Brand strategy. Digital and social media. Pitching new business.
After leaving agency life to start a family, I worked as a freelance PR consultant with start-ups and entrepreneurs. Then my brother Charlie pointed something out. If I was looking for a challenge that would stretch my creative and strategic abilities, why not channel that experience into the family business?
I joined CPJ Field in 2012 and now lead the company’s marketing and community engagement. My communications background has shaped CPJ Field’s digital transition and how Never Alone is positioned and promoted across communities.
Alongside Never Alone, I work closely with my brother Jeremy on CPJ Field’s colleague wellbeing programme. Caring for bereaved families is emotionally demanding work. Colleagues shoulder grief every day. Outpourings of emotion. Life stories of incredible people, often ended too early.
I’m not at the coal face, so to speak, yet it’s impossible not to be touched by the enormity of the impact our colleagues make day in, day out. Gratitude is a gift often taken for granted. My job reminds me to be grateful for all that I have, for the connections I’ve made, and for the role I can play in caring for those that care.
I represent the tenth generation of the Field family in the funeral profession, alongside my brothers Jeremy and Charlie. None of us took that responsibility for granted. Our father made clear there was never any expectation we would join the business. Each of us came to it in our own time.
My father’s approach was always to be kind, to be fair, and to be compassionate. No life event, big or small, would pass without a handwritten letter. I still have them stored in a box under the bed. And I still see them pinned to colleagues’ desks across the business. He cared deeply for the people that care. Something I too feel passionately about.
CPJ Field’s family motto is Care Above All. For me, this extends naturally into Never Alone. Bereavement can be incredibly tough, especially when you’re alone. And nobody should ever feel alone.
When I first joined the family business, I dreaded people asking what I did for a living. Quite a change from discussing Peroni and Bombay Sapphire. Now, I actively invite the conversation. I see it as a golden opportunity to break down outdated stereotypes about funeral directors. Almost always, people are surprised that a funeral director could offer community support like Never Alone, and for free. Almost always, they ask, “Do all funeral directors offer this?” I proudly respond, “No.”
In a world where you can be anything, choosing kindness is often underrated. But it remains my motivating force.
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