Hire chairs, tables, crockery and catering equipment for a wake or funeral reception. Delivered to your venue, no minimum order, no quote needed.
When a family organises a wake or funeral reception, the practical arrangements often fall to whoever is managing the day. Equipment hire can be booked online and delivered directly to the venue, whether that is a church hall, community centre, private home or hired function room. There is no minimum spend and no quote process required. The catalogue is open to browse and orders go through a standard online checkout.
The most commonly hired items for wakes are chairs, trestle tables and tablecloths. Where a hot buffet is being served, chafing dishes and warming trays keep food at temperature without needing kitchen access. Tea and coffee equipment is useful for longer receptions. Crockery and glassware can be returned dirty, which removes the task of washing up at the end of an already difficult day.
Expo Hire offers the Send It Back Dirty service on crockery and glassware. Everything goes back in the crates it arrived in, unwashed, and the cleaning is handled at the depot. For a funeral reception, this removes one less job from an already long day.
Crockery is available in full place settings or individual pieces. Glassware covers wine glasses, tumblers, champagne flutes and water glasses. Orders are placed for the number of guests, with a small buffer built in for breakages during service.
For receptions with hot food, chafing dishes keep dishes warm without needing an oven or hob nearby. Food can be prepared off site and transported to the venue, then kept at temperature throughout the reception using chafing dishes with water pans and fuel burners underneath. This works well in church halls and community rooms that have limited kitchen facilities.
Tea urns and hot water boilers handle the volume of a busy reception without constant refilling. Coffee percolators are available for events where coffee is being served alongside tea. Bar equipment, ice buckets and bottle coolers can be added for receptions where wine or soft drinks are on offer.
Trestle tables are the most practical choice for serving food at a wake. They fold flat, are easy to move and cover well with a tablecloth. Folding tables and stacking chairs make the most of limited floor space in smaller halls. Round tables suit a more structured seating plan where guests are seated rather than free to move around.
White tablecloths are the most commonly chosen for funeral receptions. They arrive laundered and are collected as-is after the event, with no washing required.
Equipment is delivered before the event and collected at a time arranged in advance. Collections can be scheduled for the following day, which removes any end-of-day pressure. Delivery charges are calculated by mileage from the depot, and are shown at checkout before payment.
Expo Hire delivers across England and Wales. Orders can be placed online at any time without calling or requesting a quote. Stock availability is shown in real time, and checkout confirms the delivery date. For larger orders, the Large Order Deposit Scheme allows you to reserve equipment with a deposit rather than full payment upfront.
There’s no need to worry about a damage deposit when placing an event hire order with Expo Hire. Instead, we run a free minor damage waiver scheme to cover minor damage or loss, so you don’t need to worry if you break the odd glass or plate. We do charge for excessive or negligent loss or damage at 10x the hire price. Please check our terms and conditions for full details.
Working out delivery costs is easy with Expo Hire; simply use our carriage calculator to find which of our branches is near to you. Tap your postcode in and it will confirm not only whether we cover that postcode or not, but also which of our 11 branches is closest to you and the cost for delivery from that branch, as well as the list of possible extra charges.
Once you have filled your basket and confirmed your delivery dates and postcode in the checkout, we will show you an itemised cost for delivery so you know exactly what you’re paying for before you place your order.
Want to know when your delivery is coming? You can track your driver using our real time maps on the day of delivery and collection. Simply enter your postcode and order number into our order tracking page and find out when our driver will be with you. You can also use the link we send you by automated text.
Planning a big event in the future? At Expo Hire we can help you secure your event hire booking quickly without it costing the Earth. If your hire charge is over £500, you can now book your hire equipment with just a 25% deposit, paying the remainder up to 28 days prior to delivery. All you need to do is select the deposit option when checking out. Full details are available in our terms and conditions.