Angela is our general manager and runs the operational side as well as assisting with the planning of the suite of bereavement services.

Angela has over 25 years’ experience within the bereavement field and crematoria, she has campaigned for the dignified burial of pre-24 week babies, as well as working with local stillbirth and neonatal death charity Sands, to develop baby remembrance gardens which are now a feature up and down the country. Angela brings a wealth of industry knowledge to Birches, leading the staff in an informed and sensitive way to help them provide the best for families on what can be such a difficult day.

As a mother and grandmother, Angela understands how the loss of a loved one can affect the family and is passionate about people having a ‘good death and send off’. Angela feels it’s really important to the healing process to truly celebrate their loved one’s life. The focus at Birches is to work alongside funeral directors to ensure that we can provide the most positive bespoke experience for each individual.

Outside of work, Angela is a keen football fan. When she is not shouting from the terraces, she can be found enjoying the theatre, walking the dog and spending time with her family.

Pete is our Operations Manager, taking care of the day-to-day operations here at Birches. As well as helping to ensure that those who are visiting us are well looked after, Pete will be making sure the funerals taking place here go exactly as planned.

Pete has worked in the funeral business for over 12 years, and his knowledge and experience of working with families allows us to conduct services that truly reflect the life and personality of your loved one. He is proud to be working at Birches, liaising with funeral directors and families to make a difficult time easier to bear.

Pete lives in Manchester and enjoys travelling, reading and spending time with friends and family.

As Head Gardener Natalie is responsible for managing the team of gardeners, overseeing maintenance and development of the park and memorials and the scattering on our grounds. The landscape around Birches is important in providing a safe haven for families on hard days and Natalie ensures that the grounds are presented to a high standard.

Natalie has been working with plants for nearly 15 years, across many areas of horticulture, She has looked after a number of our beautiful local National Trust properties including Little Moreton Hall and Biddulph Grange as well as Private estates.

A fully qualified RHS level 3 horticulturist, having graduated the Historic and Botanic Gardens Trainee program (HBGTP) and holding a BA in Fine Art, Natalie has a natural, intuitive approach to gardens and design underpinned by a pragmatic, no-nonsense attitude and a love of our native plant and animal species. Natalie has a strong interest of the healing potential of plants, not just as pharmaceutical medicines but also the immersive, healing power of a garden.

In her free time Natalie likes to keep fit, both physically and mentally, spending time pottering in her own garden trying out new ideas and walking her rescued whippet in the beautiful Cheshire countryside and beyond when possible.

John is our Operations leader, managing front of house during services he will often be the first person you see as you arrive to the Chapel. John is responsible for many of the operational aspects of the site from ensuring the service runs smoothly and to families unique wishes all the way through to providing the cremation service with the care and dignity loved ones deserve.

John has lived locally for many years and knows the area incredibly well. He has a wealth of experience in public facing roles and aims to provide the best service possible every time and cares for each of our families during their time with us. John is warm, approachable and always on hand to answer any questions. He has been here since before the building was constructed and has invested much of his time to ensuring that everything is done to a high standard as per the wishes of the family whilst also liaising with funeral directors to make sure every detail is right.

In his spare time he can be found walking the local countryside with his four Springer Spaniels or having a few drinks with friends in the local.

Helen is one of the friendly voices at the end of the phone there to guide and support families through the funeral arrangement and memorials process. Having experience across both crematoria and working in Funeral homes, Helen is knowledgeable and hard-working to ensure the very best for those using our services.

Laura’s work includes welcoming visitors to Birches; looking after our funeral directors; and dealing with administration tasks.

Laura wanted to work in funerals since high school so that she could help families through difficult times in the same way that she and her family were in the past.

Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with her family and seven dogs, playing the guitar and watching documentaries.

As the full-time gardener Benedict spends most of his time with pruners, spades and trowels, maintaining the planting and landscaped elements of the site.

Benedict is an RHS level 3 horticulturist and HBGTP graduate, with experience working in both public and private gardens as well as landscaping and garden design. Recent gardening roles include the National Trust at Dunham Massey as rose gardener and volunteer manager.

Whilst being a passionate plantsperson, keen ecologist and self-professed gardening geek Benedict endeavors to blend the science of horticulture, a strong appreciation for aesthetics and atmosphere – informed by nearly ten years working in theatre production in a previous life – and a good dose of honest hard work! A specialist in pruning and training of woody plants Benedict can often be found in the rose garden, assessing the roses and climbers to ensure each of our memorial plants are presented to a high standard.

In his free time Benedict enjoys painting, sculpture and model making, pretending to be a rock guitarist and walking his rescued whippet in the beautiful Cheshire countryside.

Laura joined the birches family in November 2022. Part of our cremation team and responsible for our careful and respectful daily cremations. Laura, gentle with your loved ones and a great energy for those still around! Laura’s here every day enjoying various roles and responsibilities. She’ll be there to assist with your visit at the chapel and ensuring your loved ones are safely collected and brought to rest with us a while. Laura works with immense pride, carefulness and love - nothing ever too much. Laura is always around to offer a helping hand as well as making you smile within moments! A naturally caring person, Laura has worked in funeralcare previously where her passion could be practiced. Searching for the right team to work for, continuously wanting to learn, grow and develop in every possible way.

Laura spends time out of work with her dog Wilson. You may find Wilson by Laura’s side here at Birches some days, a gentle boy and beautiful smile to have around! Be sure to say hello if you see them about (sometimes in the gardens or watching the ducks) As well as a dog lover, Laura enjoys all things outdoors. If there’s trees, a view, new sights to see, peace and quiet then Laura’s happy! A simple soul who gets excited about almost everything. To name a few, local history, churches and beautiful buildings, taking photos. Music, singing and playing ukulele keep her occupied at home. Never a dull moment for sure but always a pleasant one.