Bereavement Clearance in Bodmin, Cornwall

A full bereavement clearance of a two-storey terraced home in Bodmin, the historic county town on the edge of Bodmin Moor. The property had been lived in for decades and every room was still exactly as it had been left: wardrobes and rails of clothing, textiles and blankets stacked on the beds, musical instruments, framed paintings and artwork, and a loft packed to the rafters with boxes, timber and stored furniture.

Clearances after a death are not the same as any other job, and we do not treat them that way. We worked at the family's pace, room by room, setting aside documents, photographs, jewellery and personal keepsakes for them to go through rather than making those decisions for them. Nothing was cleared until they had confirmed it.

The kitchen was one of the clearest transformations. Shelves of crockery, glassware and decades of accumulated kitchenware were removed and the room taken back to bare units. The reception rooms, hallway, stairs, all four bedrooms, the bathroom and the loft followed, along with the overgrown rear yard and garden, which had not been touched in some time.

As always, as much as possible was kept out of the ground. Furniture, books, clothing and household goods in reasonable condition went to our resale channels or to local charities, and the rest was disposed of through licensed facilities. We are registered waste carriers and can tell a family exactly where their belongings went.