Parents who arrived 10 minutes late for baby daughter's funeral are told: 'We've already buried her'



A devastated couple arrived at their baby daughter's funeral 10 minutes late - and were stunned to be told they had missed the ceremony.

Michelle Mahoney, 24, and Matthew Small, 25, were on their way when they got stuck in traffic on the way to bury their stillborn baby, who they had named Angel.

When they arrived at the graveside they found a small mound of earth and realised their daughter's funeral had gone ahead without them.

Matthew, from Cardiff, South Wales, choked back tears as he described the couple's double heartache.

He said: 'Words can't describe the pain we felt at having to bury our baby girl. It broke my heart. It was hard enough to grieve for her - but now we've been denied a proper burial for her, it is even harder.

Heartbreak: Matthew Small, 25, and Michelle Mahoney, 24, arrived at their stillborn daughter's funeral ten minutes late - and missed the service



'The hospital arranged the funeral for us, as she was stillborn, and we were told to arrive at the crematorium at half past nine.

'We left in taxis in plenty of time - but bad traffic meant that we were a few minutes late arriving.

'We were in such a state, we didn't think to call the vicar and say we were going to be late - we were just trying to get through the day without falling apart.

'We were supposed to meet the car carrying her coffin at the crematorium - but I couldn't see a car there.

'But when we arrived we were told that we were too late. I couldn't believe what we were hearing. They had buried our little girl without us, because we were 10 minutes late. We arrived at the graveside and found a small mound of earth.

'My girlfriend, Michelle, was inconsolable. The staff panicked a bit and called the vicar back straight away to conduct a short service.

The child's funeral was organised by staff at University Hospital of Wales (pictured)



'But it was too little, too late. We would have liked to have seen the coffin.

'It doesn't feel right not to have said goodbye properly.'

The couple, who have two other young daughters, were told at Michelle's 32 week scan that their unborn child had died in the womb.

Doctors told the couple that their baby's heart had been pumping blood around her body the wrong way - and she had died.

Michelle still had to go through the traumatic process of giving birth to Angel. Staff at the University Hospital of Wales then arranged the child's funeral for the couple.

Matthew claims that the funeral director phoned him to inform him of the time and date of the funeral - and insists he told the undertaker the couple planned to be there.

Michelle added: 'They just went ahead without us and assumed we wouldn't turn up.

'It was snowing heavily at the time, and I'm sure they could have understood us being a few minutes late.

'They had Matthew's mobile number, and if they were in that much of a hurry, they could have phoned us to ask if we were still coming.

'When we arrived, with our parents, they had just finished filling in her grave.

'The funeral director apologised and asked the minister to come back and say a few words, but the damage was already done.

'I am still in pieces following Angel's death. Losing a child is bad enough, but to be told you've missed their funeral is just devastating.'

Funeral director D Caesar Jones, of Whitchurch, Cardiff, was contracted by UHW to carry out the funeral.

A spokesman for Dignity Plc, which owns the firm, said: 'We contacted the family out of courtesy to pass on our condolences and to inform the parents of the time and date of the funeral.

'Because the funeral has been arranged by UHW, most parents choose not to attend.

'We informed Mr Small of the time of the funeral, but the couple did not inform us that they wished to attend.

'At 10.30am we received a call from the cemetery office saying Mr Small and Miss Mahoney had arrived but by this time the service had taken place.

'When the minister finished his service at the crematorium he tried to help the couple by providing another service.

'We are deeply sorry to hear of the death of any child but believe we did everything possible to involve the family in the service.'

A spokeswoman for Cardiff council, which runs Thornhill Crematorium, said: 'Cardiff Council Bereavement Services was advised to proceed with the burial by the funeral director.

'Bereavement Services does not have any contact with the families and relies on instructions provided by the funeral director.

'We are of course very sorry for the distress that this has caused to the family of baby Angel Mahoney-Small.'