The following information was obtained from Social Services for guidance. Detailed enquiries should be referred to the DSS Funerals Officer .

Regulated Social Fund

You will be entitled to a payment for funeral expenses if:

i) You or your partner get a qualifying benefit at the time of your claim - JobSeekers allowance (JS) , income based JS, family credit, disability working allowance, housing benefit or council tax benefit; and

ii) the funeral takes place in the UK or another EEA country if you or a member of your family

are an EEA national with 'worker status' or the 'right to reside' ;and

iii) the deceased was ordinarily resident in the UK when he/she died; and

iv) you claim any time from the date of death up to 3 months after the funeral. Make sure you claim within the time limit even if you are waiting to hear about qualifying benefit. So long as you put in a further claim for funeral expenses within 3 months of the decision on the qualifying benefit, your claim will be treated as made on the date of your first claim (or on the date from which the qualifying benefit is awarded if that is later); and

v) you accept responsibility for the costs of the funeral (or you've already paid them) ;and either

a) you were the partner of the deceased (of the opposite sex, married and part of the same household, or unmarried and living together as husband and wife, or you were partners living in the same household before either or both of you entered a residential care or nursing home.) ; or

b) you were close relative or close friend of the deceased and there is no surviving partner nor any immediate family member not getting a qualifying benefit, and it is 'reasonable' for you to take responsibility for the funeral costs; or

c) you are claiming for the funeral of a child for whom you or your partner were responsible and there is no 'absent parent' who does not get a qualifying benefit; or

d) you or your partner were the parent of a still born child.

If there is no surviving partner - you may be eligible as a close relative or close friend of the deceased if it is reasonable for you to take responsibility for the costs, given the nature and extent of contact with the deceased. But first of all the DSS will look at the circumstances of any immediate family.

In most cases you will not be entitled to a funeral payment where there is a parent, son or daughter of the deceased who does not get any of the qualifying benefits. You will only be eligible if that person was estranged from the deceased, or a full-time student, or a wholly maintained member of a religious order; or if they are in hospital or in prison and had been getting a qualifying benefit immediately before they went in.

The amount of the funeral payment - the following costs can be met

for a burial;

a) the necessary costs of purchasing a burial plot with an exclusive right of burial;

b) the necessary cost of burial

for a cremation

a) the necessary costs of the cremation including medical references;

b) the cost of any necessary registered doctors ' certificates

c) the amount of a doctor's fee for the removal of a pacemaker or other active implanted medical device, or up to £20 if it is removed by a funeral director.

in addition to the above costs for either a burial or cremation the following costs can be met

the cost of any documentation required to release assets which may be deducted from a funeral payment

a) the reasonable costs of transport over and above 50 miles, if it is necessary to transport the deceased more than 50 miles within the UK to the funeral director's premises or place of rest (including travel to the place of death);

b) the reasonable costs of transport for the coffin and bearers and one additional car over an above 50 miles, where the distance necessarily exceeds 50 miles from the funeral director's premises or place of rest to and from the funeral; for burial in an existing plot these transport costs are allowed whether or not it is necessary to have the funeral more than 50 miles distance, but the total costs must not exceed the amount that would have been awarded for burial in a new plot;

c) the necessary costs of one return journey for you or your partner if you are responsible for the funeral costs, to either arrange or attend the funeral, limited to the amount it costs to travel to and from your own home;

d) up to £600 for any other funeral expenses (up to £100 if items or services are provided under a pre-paid funeral plan or similar arrangement.)

Deductions - Certain deductions are made from the payment to you. Any funeral payment is recoverable from the estate of the deceased. The following are deducted from the funeral payment;

a) any savings you have above £500 , or £1000 if aged over 60 (capital is worked out in the same way as for income support). However, if you claim funeral expenses within 12 months of the death of your husband , any of your widow's payment is also ignored as capital. It makes no difference whose funeral you are arranging;

b) any of the deceased's assets which are available to you without probate, letters of administration or confirmation having been granted;

c) any sum due to you because of the death; from an insurance policy, occupational pension scheme, burial club or similar arrangement;

d) any contribution towards funeral expenses from a charity or relative ( yours or the deceased's);

e) any war pension funeral grant;

f) any amount paid for funeral expenses from a pre-paid funeral plan or similar arrangement

Any payments from the MacFarlane Trusts, the Fund or the Eileen Trust are disregarded.