About Us

Over 100 Years of Community Service And History


Harold............. Fred............. Jim............. George
Jack .............George (senior)

The Original Workers of G. Collins & Sons

When George Collins ventured out to start G. Collins and Sons back in 1893 at the age of 21, all he had was a piece of string, a penknife, a barrow and a shilling!

Over time, George (Snr) built up the company into the local village Builders and Undertakers.

George married Laura and they had 7 children, Jack, Ethel, George (Jnr) James (Jim), Fred and Harold.

When George died in 1928, the company was left in the hands of his son, James Fortesque Collins (Jim), who was only 18 years old to carry on the family business into the 2nd generation.

Jim married Doris Ivy in 1932 and they had one child, James Keith Collins, commonly known to everyone today as ‘Keith Collins’.

Between 1943 and 1946 like many other companies, G. Collins & Sons closed down during the Second World War.

When Jim died suddenly in 1978, the business was left to his son Keith (third generation).

Keith married Verna in 1955 and they had one son, Duncan.
Duncan (fourth generation) married Linda in 1980 and they had two children, James and Gemma. Sadly whilst Duncan was helping his father run the family business he was killed tragically in a motorbike accident in 1985. This left Keith to run the business with Duncan’s wife Linda, who became the company’s first lady funeral director. Linda left the business to peruse a nursing career.

Today the company proprietor is still Keith Collins (third generation) and his grandchildren James and Gemma (fifth generation) are actively involved in the day to day running of the firm, along with other team members.

Keith has seen drastic changes in the funeral profession during his 55 years of work for G. Collins & Sons. He said “once the role of a village undertaker was a simple one – all we had to do was make the coffins and turn up at the church. Now we are expected to be extremely specialised and know everything, so it’s a very different job”.

Keith recalls his earlier years working for the company; he says “I’ve got vivid memories of the first coffin that I made when I was 17. I remember seeing it in church and sticking my chest out and being very proud”.

The company has now been in business since 1893 and still prides itself in providing a traditional family service that has been passed down through generations. Not only do we want to meet your current needs, but we also seek to build a relationship of trust, so that you will return to us in the future.

We opened our sub office in Cressing Road, Braintree in 1997. This provides a local office for our clients to make arrangements, hand in documents and donations, alternatively if preferred we are always happy to visit families at home.

When arranging funerals, we undertake all the necessary arrangements such as liaising with Churches, Ministers and Local Authorities. In addition to this we can arrange newspaper announcements, floral tributes, services sheets, catering or any other requests.

We have a Private Chapel of Rest at our White Notley office, which is open 8am – 5pm and we are happy to accommodate families at any other time provided that they have made an appointment beforehand.

G. Collins & Sons has a traditional all black cortege which consists of a hearse and two limousines.

We have both male and female funeral arrangers and directors available 24 hours a day who can be contacted on our 24 hour manned telephone, 01376 583750.

The company are members of the National Association of Funeral Directors (NAFD), The Society of Allied and Independent Funeral Directors (SAIF) and The British Institute of Funeral Directors (B.I.F.D.). As a condition of membership to these organisations we have to abide by a strict Code of Practice.

In 2001 the company extended its service to customers by offering a Memorial Service. We work closely with a local family run firm of stonemasons who can accommodate for traditional and modern memorials and techniques. We provide our clients with a free, no obligation, itemised, written quotation at competitive prices. We can also help you choose a suitable material for your memorial and help you choose an appropriate inscription

Paul ................James................ John
Gill ..................Gemma.................. Lorraine

The Current Workers of G. Collins & Sons