'People say I don't look like a funeral director'

A 24-year-old funeral director has said that people are often "surprised" that a young person is working in the industry.

Hollie James recently set up her own company in Radstock, near Bath, and is thought to be the youngest independent funeral director in Somerset.

"I lost my mum when I was 15 years old and all I remember was it being quite a bit of blur at the time of organising the funeral," she told BBC Radio Somerset.

"It’s a privilege to support people at their time of need and we get to meet so many different people. No day is the same."

Ms James started her career with an apprenticeship at her local crematorium in Bath when she was 18.

She said: "I didn’t get the grade that I wanted to when I did my GCSEs.

"I was brought up with my grandparents and they urged me to go for an apprenticeship."

Ms James said she used to get "so nervous" when taking her first funerals.

She continued: "I used to get heart palpitations at first. I would be pacing up and down in the office – it’s because I care.

"You don’t get a trial run in funerals, everything has to be perfect.

"It’s become second nature now to me and I can deal with the nerves and responsibility."

While an apprentice, Ms James said she had built up contacts by meeting funeral directors across Somerset and now ran her own business.

She said: "It was quite scary for me, going from an established company to go on my own. It’s quite daunting running my own business but so far it’s going really well.

"We always say, metaphorically we hold people’s hands through the journey."

Ms James said she was keen to break "taboos" around death and funerals.

"Everyone has said that it’s really refreshing that young people are coming into the industry. It’s a changing industry.

"There’s so much taboo around death and people need to have conversations about death and I hope to help change that."

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