How to Involve a Regimental Association in a UK Funeral

Why Regimental Associations Attend Funerals

Regimental and corps associations exist to maintain the bonds between soldiers who served together. When a member dies, these associations consider it a duty — not a favour — to honour them at the funeral. That can mean sending a representative to attend in uniform or blazer, providing a bearer party from among fellow veterans, arranging a regimental collect or prayer to be read during the service, or lending a regimental flag for the cortege.

The key distinction: for serving personnel who die in service, the unit and the Ministry of Defence handle this coordination through the Visiting Officer. For veterans — which is the vast majority of military funerals — the family must reach out directly.

Finding the Right Association

Start with what you know about the deceased's service. Look for discharge papers, a service record, medals, or even a beret badge in a drawer. Any of these will name the regiment, corps, or branch.

If you have nothing to go on, contact Veterans UK to ask how to request the deceased's service record. Have the deceased's full name, date of birth, and approximate dates of service ready if requested. The record can help identify the branch and unit, which tells you which association to contact.

Once you know the regiment or corps:

• Army: search for the regimental association directly — most have websites with a secretary's email or phone number. If the regiment has been amalgamated (many have, especially infantry regiments), the successor regiment's association usually absorbs the old membership
• Royal Navy / Royal Marines: contact the Royal Naval Association (RNA) — they maintain local branches across the UK
• RAF: the RAF Association (RAFA) operates similarly, with local branches that coordinate funeral attendance

The Royal British Legion (RBL) is the cross-service umbrella and is often the fastest first call. Even if the RBL branch cannot provide regimental representation itself, branch secretaries typically know who can and will make introductions.

What to Ask For

When you contact the association, be specific about what you want. Not every association can provide everything, and some will offer things you had not considered. Common requests:

• A representative to attend in association blazer and beret, to be seen by the congregation
• A bearer party — six veterans to carry the coffin (see bearer party protocol for the drill)
• A standard bearer to parade the regimental or association Standard
• The regimental collect read during the service — ask the association to supply the text and confirm which version is current
• A piper or drummer — some Scottish and Irish regiments maintain pipers who will play at funerals

Have the funeral date, time, venue, and the officiant's contact details ready when you call. The association will coordinate directly with the funeral director or celebrant on logistics.

Timing Matters

Contact the association as early as possible. Association volunteers attend in their own time, and many are elderly. Weekend funerals, funerals during Remembrance week, and funerals at short notice all reduce availability.

If the association cannot send someone to your specific date, ask whether a neighbouring branch or another association can cover.

What to Expect on the Day

The association representative or bearer party will arrive at the venue early to meet the funeral director and walk through the processional route. If a standard bearer is attending, they will position themselves outside the chapel entrance before the hearse arrives.

During the service, the representative may read the regimental collect, the Exhortation from Binyon's For the Fallen, or the Kohima Epitaph. These readings are coordinated with the officiant beforehand so they fit naturally into the order of service.

After the funeral, it is customary — though not required — for the family to invite association members to the wake. For many veterans, attending a comrade's funeral is itself an act of remembrance, and the wake is where they share the stories that a formal service cannot hold.

The Military Funeral — UK guide includes pre-written phone and email scripts for contacting regimental associations, along with a checklist of questions to cover in the first call.