A grieving son has branded a funeral directors "shambolic" after discovering minutes before his mother's burial they had forgotten to dig her grave.

Former Canterbury businesswoman Susan Baines was due to be buried on March 28 at St John the Baptist Church in Swalecliffe.

But after arriving at the church her family was told she could not be interred because of a mix-up.

Her son, Mark Baines, from Reculver, said that five minutes before the funeral, a funeral director told him the grave had not been dug.

“I was so shocked, but I wasn’t going to make a scene there,” he said.

The body of 70-year-old Mrs Baines was kept in the church overnight, until it could be buried the following day.

About 25 close friends and relatives had travelled from as far as Wales for the service.

But instead of being able to attend Mrs Baines’ funeral, they were only able to witness a memorial.

This was followed by an impromptu burial the next day, when almost everyone had returned home.

“We had a burial service with me and my son and my partner,” said Mr Baines.

“There were literally three people watching her being buried.”

Mrs Baines, who ran Clough’s Secretarial College in Canterbury from the late 1970s until 1992, died on January 9.

Her funeral, which was delayed because of a post-mortem, was organised by Woollard & Kent - a 20-year-old firm with offices in both Wincheap and Tankerton.

After receiving a complaint from Mr Baines, it responded by apologising and offering to deduct £500 from his bill.

“I gave them an opportunity to make everything all right, and they just took the mickey,” said 45-year-old Mr Baines, who now plans to seek financial damages from the company.

“Those two weeks were harder than when I lost her, because I felt like I’d let her down.

"She was the kindest most selfless lady that any son could wish for - she put everybody first, so for this to happen makes it all the more of a disgrace and she certainly didn't deserve this.

“It’s caused so much distress. I couldn’t grieve for my mother properly.”

In his letter to the funeral directors, Mr Baines said he was “finding it hard to mourn” having not given his mother the send-off the family had planned.

“The most important part of the ceremony didn’t happen, which makes the whole thing a waste of time - hearse, reverend, church, carefully thought-out verses - all pointless,” he said.

“This is something that can only be done once, that should have been done right.”

"She was the kindest most selfless lady that any son could wish for - she put everybody first, so for this to happen makes it all the more of a disgrace" - Mark Baines

Mark Woollard, the owner of Woollard & Kent, responded by apologising for the distress caused.

“As a company, we are thoroughly upset and dismayed that this event has happened,” he said.

“It’s not our normal practice and we have obviously sent our sincere apologies to Mr Baines. It’s purely down to human error.”

He explained that Mrs Baines’ family requested to change the date of the funeral several times, leading to logistical confusion.

“Obviously the member of staff who was changing the dates is absolutely mortified that this has happened,” he said.

“We all are, as a company.

“In my 30 years of being a funeral director, this has never happened.”