In January 2023, we embarked upon a transformative endeavour that seeks to redefine the landscape of the funeral industry through funeral director education.

 

This ambitious initiative, generously supported by the Ian Potter Foundation, represents a pivotal moment in our mission to redefine the approach to funeral director education in Australia. Our overarching objective has been to craft a comprehensive, compassionate, and formally accredited tertiary-level qualification, specifically tailored for the training of prospective funeral directors and mortuary staff.

 

Our course has been uniquely developed emphasising the vital role of community, utilising cultural, community and industry experts. We emphasise two pivotal components:

• The importance of compassion, informed decision making and consent-based mortuary care, and

• The logistical composition of funeral directing integrating the above values.

 

Unlike conventional funeral director courses that often prioritise a sales-driven approach, our course places these essential values at the forefront of our curriculum. This innovative departure from the industry norm marks a significant shift, one that we believe will encourage the growth of integrity-based and human-centered practice within the funeral industry.

 

We are excited to build the involvement of cultural experts from our community to help us build the modules (eg Jewish Rabbi, Islamic Imam, Indigenous Elder, Buddist Monk, etc).