FAQs

Remembrance Parks Central Victoria

Frequently Asked Questions

The following list of frequently asked questions attempts to provide you with answers to many of the common questions families have with the passing of a loved one. 

If you don't find an answer to a question you have, our team are here to help provide transparency and choice so that you can honour and celebrate the life and memory of your loved one. For any assistance, please call 1300 266 561.

Burial

  • The location and type of grave will determine the number of burials, however generally a grave can accommodate up to three burials. Our customer care team can provide more details on the type of graves available and the number of burials for each location.

  • It is common for family members to want to stay together. Yes, if you have the correct authority over the grave (permission from the Holder of the Right of Interment), you can place cremated remains in the grave of a loved one.

    If you are in the process of pre-planning your funeral, this is often a good conversation to have with family members as it may influence your decision based on the options available.

  • We encourage families to consider this question at the time of pre-planning their funeral to avoid any disappointment. There are many options for families to secure positions together and we encourage conversations to enable wishes to be fulfilled.

    If there are no pre-planning arrangements and there is space available, the correct authority over the grave (permission by the Holder of the Right of Interment), will need to be provided.

  • When a new grave is prepared, the soil that is replaced into the grave after a person has been interred is more aerated than the surrounding soil. Grave subsidence, or grave sinking, is a natural process that occurs when this freshly-excavated soil begins to slowly settle, causing the surface to sink over time.


    It is not possible to safely compact the soil immediately after a burial has taken place, so grave sinking is unfortunately an unavoidable process. Certain weather conditions can also play a role.

    Our burial team conducts routine maintenance that includes backfilling of graves to counteract the effects of grave sinking.

  • A Monumental Stonemason is responsible for erecting a monument for a grave. It is the responsibility of a family to organise a monument following burial.

Cremation

  • Only one person is cremated at a time.

  • To meet the requirements of the Cemeteries and Crematorium Act, the deceased is required to be in a suitable receptacle. Coffins/caskets and some shrouds meet these requirements. Your chosen Funeral Director can assist in arranging this.

  • The actual time taken depends on several factors, however, on average the cremation time for an adult is around 90 minutes, with the full cremation process taking approximately 3 hours to complete.

  • Following cremation, ashes are sealed in an urn with an identifying label. They are then collected by the chosen Funeral Director or transferred to our main office for safekeeping until the Authorising Person (the person who signed the paperwork for cremation) collects. This is a decision that is made with your chosen Funeral Director before the cremation takes place.

  • Across the cemeteries administered by RPCV, there is a range of cremation memorial options, from the simple elegance of a wall niche location to rose positions, unique garden positions, tree positions and pods.

Planning Ahead

  • While there are many reasons to pre-plan, the most notable is the easing of decisions relating to your own wishes about family members. Planning ahead will give you peace of mind, knowing that your requests will be honoured. And, for those who pre-purchase, you'll have protection against future price increases, while reducing the burden that often falls on family members during an emotional time.

  • Almost everything is available to be pre-purchased, including graves, burial fees, cremations, cremation memorials and chapel fees. Please contact our friendly customer services team to discuss your options.

  • Following a pre-payment, we recommend talking to your family about what you have organised and placing relevant forms with your other important documentation, e.g. your Will. At the time of need, this prepayment can be discussed with your chosen funeral director, who will liaise with our team.

  • RPCV does offer flexible payment plans, which may ease financial burden.

Memorials

  • Yes, however exceptions can be submitted for evaluation.

  • Monuments are to match the general nature of the surrounding memorials at each area (typically Monumental areas can have plaques, headstones, or monuments placed within size limitations, headstone only areas allow only headstones, and lawn areas allow only plaques/ granite desks)

  • Yes, however pre-purchased graves that are to have a foundation or monument placed prior to the burial must also be pre-dug.

  • Remembrance Parks Central Victoria has a wide range of traditional and modern memorials including: niche walls, shrubs, roses, garden positions, family gardens, remembrance books, etc. For more information please visit the memorials section of our website or call 1300 266 561. Alternatively, you can also email sales@rpcv.org.au

  • Please contact Remembrance Parks Central Victoria to arrange an appointment either at our head office at Eaglehawk or via Microsoft Teams. One of our friendly customer care team members can then discuss the different memorial options with you. Alternatively, you may email us via sales@rpcv.org.au and organise a plaque via email.

  • In most remembrance parks, when you purchase a monument from a monumental mason, that person needs to submit an “Application” or “Permit” to the remembrance park authority, giving details and a plan of the proposed monument. The fee charged ensures some security for you by enacting the cemetery staff to:

    • Check that the monument will be placed on the correct site

    • Check that the “Application” has been signed by the person who has the authority to place a monument on the site

    • Assure that the details, design and the plan of the monument conforms to the regulations of the cemetery authority concerned, and construction complies with Australian Standards

    • Record the date of placement of the monument in the records relating to the site, and the name of the mason that did the work

    • Check from time to time on your behalf during the construction of the monument for compliance with the Application and therefore your wishes

General

  • When a grave or memorial site is purchased, with it comes the right of interment – the right to decide who is buried there, and what kind of memorial they will have. The HRI is the person who holds this right. They are recorded by the cemetery trust at time of purchase, and are either the purchaser, or a person/people assigned by the purchaser.

    RPCV can advise who the HRI is for a relative’s grave or memorial site if you are not sure.

  • Yes, we do ask that you be mindful of others, have your dog under immediate control at all times and clean up after your dog.

  • RPCV is responsible for maintaining the grounds in our locations. It is the responsibility of the Holder of Right of Interment to maintain the memorial.

  • If the service is booked as public, no password will be required. If the service is booked as private, a username and password will be required to view the stream. The username and password will be supplied with the authorisation certificate.