A new service for funeral directors' mental wellbeing has been welcomed by a Southall Funeral director who said the role can be highly stressful.

Michael Tiney, from Southall Funeral Service, commended the free counselling introduced for employees who are experiencing anxiety and stress at work.

In a survey put to the National Society of Allied and Independent Funeral Directors (SAIF), more than one in three directors could be in need of counselling support.

Asking SAIF members about their wellbeing, 38% said they had experienced stress or anxiety and one in 10 requested help.

Mr Tiney said: "Funeral directors can be affected by the stress and anxiety which stems from working long, unsocial hours with disrupted sleep patterns.

"We spend a lot of our time supporting bereaved families during the most difficult time of their lives but we often neglect our own wellbeing, so the service offered by SAIF is something we may use."

Chief Executive of the SAIF Terry Tennens added: "This kind of work can really take its toll. Counselling has been available for some time to emergency services personnel, but before SAIFSupport, there was nothing in place for funeral directors.

"The service has been well received by our funeral director members, who like ambulance crews and police officers, can sometimes be affected by the trauma of fatal accidents or incidents they are called to, or by the emotional strain of supporting bereaved families.”