Guidance for medical and bereavement staff
Use this guidance if a burial needs to take place within 24 hours of death for religious reasons.
Sending the Medical Certificate of Cause of Death (MCCD)
GPs, surgeries and doctors must not send the MCCD directly to Manchester Register Office.
The MCCD must be submitted by the Medical Examiner, or by somebody authorised to act on their behalf.
How to submit an urgent faith death
- Upload the MCCD using the usual process.
- Add FAITH DEATH after the informant's telephone number.
- You must also email registeroffice@manchester.gov.uk to let us know that an urgent faith death has been submitted.
Before you submit the MCCD
Make sure:
- all details are complete
- all names are spelled correctly
- there are no omissions
- there are no errors.
Errors may delay funeral arrangements.
Do not give the paper MCCD to the family
The paper MCCD must not be given to the family or posted to Manchester Register Office.
It should be scanned and uploaded using the usual process and then disposed of in line with your local document retention policy.
Advice for bereavement teams
Please help families understand that urgent burial requests can only be processed once the necessary paperwork has been received and checked.
Families should not attend Manchester Register Office in person to request or collect a burial authority.
Where appropriate, the burial authority will be issued electronically.