Writing a funeral order of service is one of those tasks that arrives at the hardest possible time. If you've found this guide, you're likely planning a service for someone you love while managing grief, family logistics, and a tight timeline all at once. We hope this makes one part of it simpler.
Below you'll find exactly what an order of service is, what to include on each page, how many copies to print, and answers to the questions families ask us most often.
What Is a Funeral Order of Service?
A funeral order of service is a printed booklet given to everyone attending the funeral or memorial. It guides mourners through the ceremony — telling them which hymns will be sung, which readings will be shared, and who will be speaking — and afterwards it becomes a keepsake that family and friends take home and treasure.
Most orders of service in the UK are A5 booklets of 4, 8, or 12 pages, featuring a photograph of the person who has died on the front cover along with their name and dates.
What to Include: Page by Page
The Front Cover
The front cover typically includes:
- A favourite photograph of your loved one
- Their full name (some families add a nickname in quotes, e.g. Margaret "Peggy" Wilson)
- Their date of birth and date of passing
- The date, time, and location of the service
- An optional short phrase such as "In Loving Memory" or "A Celebration of the Life of"
Choose a photograph that captures them as family and friends will want to remember them — it doesn't need to be recent, just true to who they were.
The Order of Ceremony
The inside pages walk attendees through the service in sequence. A typical Church of England or crematorium service follows this structure:
- Entrance music — the piece played as mourners take their seats or as the coffin enters
- Welcome and opening words — from the officiant, celebrant, or minister
- First hymn or song
- Reading or poem — often given by a family member or friend (name them in the booklet)
- Eulogy or tribute — the address celebrating your loved one's life
- Second hymn or song
- Prayers or reflection — religious or secular depending on the service
- Committal — the formal words of farewell
- Exit music — the piece played as the congregation leaves
Non-religious and celebrant-led services follow a similar shape, simply substituting prayers with reflections, poems, or a moment of silence with music.
Hymns and Songs
If hymns will be sung, print the full lyrics in the booklet so everyone can join in — most traditional hymns are out of copyright, but your funeral director or printer can confirm. Frequently chosen hymns for UK funerals include:
- Abide With Me
- The Lord Is My Shepherd (Psalm 23)
- All Things Bright and Beautiful
- Amazing Grace
- Jerusalem
- How Great Thou Art
- Morning Has Broken
For non-religious services, families often choose a meaningful song and simply list the title and artist, played rather than sung.
Readings and Poems
Popular funeral readings include Do Not Stand at My Grave and Weep, She Is Gone (He Is Gone), Death Is Nothing at All, and Bible passages such as Psalm 23 or Ecclesiastes 3. List the title and the name of the person reading it. If you'd like to print a poem in full, check whether it's still in copyright — your printer can advise.
The Back Cover
The back cover usually includes:
- A second photograph, or a collage of photos
- Details of the wake or reception ("The family warmly invite you to join them afterwards at...")
- Donation information ("Donations in memory of John may be made to Cancer Research UK")
- A thank-you message ("The family thank you for your love and support at this time")
- Optionally, a short closing line or verse
How Many Copies Do You Need?
A good rule of thumb: order one copy per expected attendee, plus 10–20% extra. Couples often share a booklet, but many people take one home as a keepsake, and family members frequently want spares to send to relatives who couldn't attend.
| Expected attendance | Recommended copies |
|---|---|
| Small family service (up to 20) | 15–30 copies |
| Average service (30–60 people) | 50 copies |
| Large service (80–120 people) | 100–150 copies |
It's far better to have a few left over than to run short — spare copies are often sent to distant relatives and become treasured keepsakes.
When Should You Order?
Most UK funerals take place two to three weeks after a death, and the order of service is usually finalised in the final week — once hymns, readings, and speakers are confirmed with the officiant. To stay comfortable:
- 10–14 days before: choose your design and gather photographs
- 7–10 days before: confirm the order of ceremony with your officiant or funeral director
- 5–7 days before: submit your final wording and photos for printing
- 2–3 days before: receive your printed booklets
At MVB Studio, our personalised funeral order of service booklets are printed and dispatched quickly across the UK — each design is fully customised with your photographs, hymns, readings, and ceremony details.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who usually writes the order of service?
Usually a close family member, often with help from the funeral director or officiant, who will confirm the ceremony structure. You write the personal elements — the photos, the tribute wording, the thank-you message — and they confirm the running order.
Does it have to be religious?
Not at all. Celebrant-led and humanist services use the same booklet format, replacing hymns and prayers with songs, poems, readings, and reflections.
Can we include photos throughout?
Yes — many families add a photo page or small pictures alongside the readings. An 8-page booklet gives comfortable room for extra photographs and longer tributes.
What's the difference between an order of service and a memorial book?
The order of service guides the ceremony itself; a memorial book is a keepsake filled with photographs and written memories, often displayed at the wake for guests to sign or browse.
What paper and size should we choose?
A5 is the standard UK size, printed on quality card or silk paper. Your printer will handle this — at MVB Studio all our booklets are printed on premium stock as standard.
A Final Word
There is no perfect order of service — only one that sounds like the person you're remembering. Keep the words simple and true, choose the photograph that makes you smile, and don't be afraid to include a touch of their humour or personality. The families we work with often tell us that, months later, the booklet is the thing people kept.
If we can help, our full range of funeral stationery — orders of service, memorial books, and invitation cards — is designed and printed in the UK, personalised for your family, and delivered quickly when time is short.
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