The coronavirus pandemic has sparked changes to the process for registering a death in Kent.

Instead of booking an appointment to register a death in person, this process must now be carried out by telephone.

The changes, which will be coming into force across the country, form part of the government's bid to support the fight against Covid-19.

Those needing to register a death should start by making an online application, and will then be telephoned by a registrar to complete the process.

Before you can register a death, you must have a Medical Cause of Death Certificate (MCCD) from the doctor.

With this new approach, your GP surgery, hospital or hospice will have already sent Kent County Council a copy of the MCCD, along with your details, which the registration service will use to contact you to complete the registration.

KCC says its registration service is working to complete registrations as quickly as possible, and apologises for any delays anyone experiences due to the current circumstance.

Those who can register a death are: a relative of the deceased; a person who was present at the death; an administrator from the hospital where the person died; a person arranging the funeral; or the funeral director.

The registration service is free of charge, although there is a charge for buying copies of the death certificate.

After the registration entry is complete, the registrar will email a certificate for burial or cremation to the funeral director or crematorium.

If the death has been referred to the coroner and the funeral is a cremation, the equivalent form will be sent by the coroner to the funeral director.

Birth registrations are currently on hold until further notice due to the current coronavirus pandemic.

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