Comment from Lee Pedley, General Manager at Neville Funerals.
As the funeral sector continues to adapt to changing consumer expectations, the integration of digital tools and practices into memorialisation is becoming an essential part of the service offering. At Neville Funerals, we have been actively developing our approach to legacy giving and digital donations for well over a decade, notably accelerated by the events of 2020. The industry-wide shift towards live-streamed services and remote attendance highlighted the need for digital platforms that extend memorial participation beyond geographic limitations.
Recognising that the bereavement journey extends beyond the day of the funeral, Neville Funerals has embedded digital legacy tools into its client services, offering families the ability to honour loved ones through meaningful, secure, and far-reaching charitable donations. Through its long-standing partnership with Memory Giving, the organisation has streamlined the legacy donation process, while meeting increasing demand for private, accessible, and practical digital solutions. Other platforms also offer the opportunity to create a memorial page for the deceased, where people are able to share memories and communicate with the family.
Legacy giving has always played a role in the funeral tradition, but digitisation has brought a significant shift in how this is delivered, often linked to a preference for more discreet and flexible giving, while ensuring full transparency and reduced administrative burden – essentially accommodating the evolving emotional and practical needs of families.
2020 was a real catalyst for digital advancements within the funeral sector. This is where digital donations became the norm, even in places of worship. This period brought about a number of adaptations, which included live-streaming services. This transformation has meant that the donation pool for charities has become greater as links are shared and more people are engaged.
Between April 2024 and March 2025, Neville Funerals facilitated 1,602 individual donation profiles, generating £452,821 in charitable donations, with an additional £77,350 raised through Gift Aid — a figure unattainable through traditional cash collections.
Beyond donations, digital memorial pages increasingly serve as a focal point for extended remembrance — allowing friends and relatives to share memories, tributes, and condolences in a curated space. While digitalisation raises important questions around the permanence and boundaries of grief expression, Neville Funerals takes a measured approach.
As an industry, we must strike a balance between enabling meaningful remembrance and acknowledging the psychological journey of grief. The tools we offer should support the grieving process — not disrupt it or artificially extend it. Our role remains one of guidance, ensuring families are supported at every stage.
In an increasingly competitive market, where client expectations are shaped by on-demand, intuitive digital experiences, I hope that at Neville Funerals we are demonstrating that personal service and innovation are not mutually exclusive. Our approach to legacy giving highlights the evolving skillset required of today’s funeral directors; blending emotional intelligence, administrative capability, and digital fluency.
As digitalisation creates more possibilities for online tributes, QR codes on headstones, AI generated voices and permanent videos, it’s important those who have lost a loved one acknowledge the grieving process. As challenging as it is, memorial pages are there to provide a space for memories and dedications, not to replace the deceased.
As the sector continues to professionalise and modernise, legacy giving stands out as an area where digital transformation delivers measurable value — to charities, to families, and to funeral providers seeking to add value and differentiation to their offer.