A Welch and Sons Funeral Services, Canterbury

A Welch and Sons Funeral Services is an independent funeral director operating from Heritage House, Burgate, Canterbury, and a second office in Herne Bay, serving Canterbury, Herne Bay, Whitstable and Beltinge across Kent. The firm offers direct cremation, pre-paid funeral plans and a wide choice of coffins including traditional, bamboo, willow, coloured and printed options, alongside customised funeral celebrations.

The business was established in 1948 by Alfred Welch, born 1876, who came from a family background in coaching work before founding the funeral business, and the firm has remained in family ownership across the generations since - giving it 77 years of continuous service to Kent communities. The firm is a member of the National Association of Funeral Directors (NAFD) and also displays Ecclesiastical Insurance accreditation. A distinguishing feature of the business is in-house bereavement counselling provided directly by Angie Welch, going beyond the funeral arrangement itself to support families afterwards.

The firm operates its own private mortuary and ambulance service and offers home visits for arrangements at no extra charge, from either its Herne Bay or Canterbury offices. Its own description of its approach - that "every funeral we arrange is the most important funeral we have ever conducted" - reflects a family firm built on long-standing, multi-generational relationships with local families across its Kent service area.