FUNERAL director Nick Douch has taken on a role at the helm of a county-wide group.

Nick, managing director of Douch Family Funeral Directors, has been installed as president of the Bournemouth and District Association of Funeral Directors (BAFD). He takes over from Stuart Major, of Christchurch’s Miller Brothers.

The BAFD is the local branch of the National Association of Funeral Directors and dates from the 1890s.

Douch Family Funeral Directors was founded in 1910 and Nick is the first member of the family to head the organisation.

At the ceremony to install him with the chain of office were 11 members of the company, including his father, Peter. Also present was the president of the National Association of Funeral Directors (NAFD), John Adams.

“It is an honour to be installed as president of the BAFD which is an historic organisation,” said Nick. “It has been representing funeral directors in this area for well over 120 years and I will be doing my best to continue that work.

“Although it is part of the NAFD, it pre-dates it and covers an area including Bournemouth, Poole, East Dorset, the Isle of Purbeck and into north Dorset.

“Following Covid I’d like to encourage more communication between all parties who support the bereaved in our area.

“We work in a sensitive area and the more communication between those in it, the better. We’d also like more funeral businesses to be active with the association; the bigger we are the louder our voice.

“The NAFD has a strict code of conduct and those people looking for a funeral director should check that businesses are members.”

Nick will serve a minimum of two years and at the ceremony, his colleague Leanne Adimi from the company’s Ferndown branch, AE Jolliffe and Son, was made vice president.

Douch Family Funeral Directors has branches in Wimborne, Ferndown, Parkstone, Corfe Mullen, Wareham, Swanage and Blandford.