Child Funeral Fund introduced in Northern Ireland in June

1 min read

Tuesday 5 April 2022

Tags: child funeral fund, funeral costs, norther ireland, department of communities

The Department for Communities in Northern Ireland has confirmed that it is introducing a new Child Funeral Fund.

This is to help bereaved parents meet the costs of a funeral on the death of a child under 18 or in the event of a still-birth after 24 weeks.

The Child Funeral Fund will make a one-off lump sum payment of £3,056 towards funeral costs, paid to the parent or to the funeral director for a basic funeral. The fund will not be means-tested, which means anyone can apply regardless of their income or savings. 

Detailed information on how to apply is not yet available. However, new regulations make clear that will come into force on 1 June.

These regulations also make clear that parents won’t receive the payment if they’ve already received a payment for the funeral under Northern Ireland’s means-tested funeral expenses payments scheme.

For more information about the new fund, visit the Department for Communities website.