SAIF Golden Charter

SAIF summer? It’ll be a hive of activity

It feels like only seconds ago that I sat down and wrote my last article for SAIFInsight. This may be due to how busy we all are – with the current death rate in the UK, a lot of us around the country may feel the days and weeks are passing by before we even realise it.

Saying that, this does mean motorbike and beer garden season is only round the corner now.

I want to focus this article on the topics that all SAIF members should be aware of. You will have heard me harping on already about ‘what SAIF members can get out of their membership’ and ‘how SAIF members can be involved with shaping the future of SAIF’, but I want to go into more detail on these areas.

Being a SAIF member is so much more than being part of a trade association to give your customers peace of mind. There is a wealth of benefits that are included as part of your membership, such as standard professional indemnity insurance, a media relations service to gain free advice on communications and promoting your business in your local area, and even the SAIF Repatriation helpline to give support and advice when dealing with transportation in and out of the country, which a lot of us only do once in a blue moon. With regulations changing constantly, the wealth of knowledge you can tap into here becomes invaluable.

That’s just a few of the benefits all SAIF members have access to; never mind the contacts we have in addition to this with our SAIF associate member firms. From funeral supplies manufacturers to insurance brokers and much more, we have more than 100 associate member firms who can assist with enquiries and supplies and, in some cases, offer additional benefits due to you being a SAIF member.

I urge everyone to visit the SAIF website and have a look at everything that is available and included in our memberships.

There may just be something there that can really assist you to grow your business or just make life a little bit easier for you because, at the end of the day, we could all do with that at times.

I also want people to be involved with SAIF and help take it forward. We are all extremely good at what we do and when asked ‘what do you do for a living’, will answer: “I’m a funeral director.”

However, some of us are even more than that.

I know we have members who have been managers in other professions, or have a history in corporate law, and other members who have previously worked in human resources.

These members can have a hugely positive impact on shaping the future of SAIF by joining one of the working groups.

We have the Quality Assurance team, which is made up of our funeral director members who inspect premises and ensure we are all working in line with SAIF’s code of practice; the Standards Committee which handles dispute resolutions and advises funeral directors on the best way to resolve complaints, and the Executive Committee which discusses any and all items relating to our profession and finds the best course of action for SAIF to support us in these areas.

These are only a few of the working groups members can be part of. Fresh ideas and knowledge in these areas will make sure SAIF stays at the forefront of funeral trade associations and helps propel us forward. If anyone has an interest now, or even wants to note their interest for the future, please contact the SAIF business centre so it can be discussed with you in more detail.

Meanwhile, there will be some announcements very soon regarding raising funds for my chosen charity, The Honeypot Children’s Charity.

I have some ideas for raising additional funds at our education sessions taking place in Leicester and Wales. These sessions are another benefit for members and count towards Continuing Professional Development (CPD), so it’s definitely worth attending.

I look forward to meeting more of you over the coming months – together with SAIF we are strong and with more knowledge and ideas we are even stronger.

Bee…SAIF!