Funeral Experts today welcomes the Government’s interim update on the Modern Service Framework (MSF) for Palliative Care and End-of-Life Care.
The Government’s recognition of rising demand, late identification of need, inequitable variation, and the pressure facing health and care systems is an important step forward.
It is also encouraging to see the MSF place clear emphasis on families and carers, outcome measurement, reducing inequalities, and integrated commissioning between ICBs, local authorities and wider care partners.
“Today’s update is an important step towards recognising that end-of-life care must be viewed as a whole-system challenge. For families, the practical consequences of death often begin just as formal clinical care ends. Funeral choices, financial uncertainty, welfare entitlements, administration, housing issues and knowing where to turn can all compound grief and distress.
“If continuity of care into bereavement is to be meaningful, it must include practical, non-clinical navigation for families and carers, particularly in deprived and underserved communities.
“Commissioning this kind of support properly will require outcome evaluation, not just activity reporting. Our evidence base, including journey-flow analysis across thousands of interactions, helps show how family needs emerge and change over time, where systems fail to connect, and what outcomes practical navigation can support.”
Jason Ghous · CEO, Funeral ExpertsThe detail and delivery of the final framework will now be critical.
Post-death practical navigation is not a replacement for specialist palliative care, hospice care, counselling or emotional bereavement support. It is a complementary model that helps families understand their options, access entitlements, manage funeral-related decisions, navigate administration, and connect with the right local support at the right time.
Evidence and insight
Evidence from Funeral Experts’ Liverpool pilot and journey-analysis work shows that family need is not linear. People may enter through funeral advice, financial support, emotional distress, housing, death administration or multi-agency coordination — and their needs can shift across these domains over time.
That kind of evidence is vital if ICBs, local authorities and public health teams are to commission services around real family journeys and measurable outcomes.
As the final MSF is developed for publication in autumn 2026, Funeral Experts looks forward to contributing evidence on post-death practical navigation, family and carer need, inequalities, outcome measurement, and integrated models of support.
Bereavement should not be an afterthought in end-of-life care.
Available nationally, FuneralExperts.com is the UK’s only independent, frontline bereavement support service combining practical advice, funeral cost transparency, and compassionate care — completely free to the public.
They work in partnership with NHS Trusts, coroners, councils, care homes, employers, employee benefit trusts, financial services and charities to support families from the moment death occurs. Their trained bereavement navigators provide emotional support, funeral planning, income maximisation advice, and help with practical tasks such as contacting organisations and accessing specialist grief support.