There's rarely a good time to face a full house clearance, and doing it after losing someone makes it harder still. This isn't a checklist to rush through — it's meant to make the practical side a little easier so there's more room for the parts that aren't practical at all.
It's completely normal to go through a house in stages rather than one sitting. Setting aside a box of things you're not ready to make a decision on — photos, letters, anything with more meaning than resale value — is a reasonable choice, not a delay. Come back to that box when it feels right, not on a deadline.
A full house clearance is often more than a single shop's backroom can absorb in one go, especially somewhere small. Spreading donations across a few shops, or calling ahead to ask about a larger drop-off, avoids turning up with more than a shop can realistically handle that day. Some shops offer home collection for larger items — worth asking directly, as it isn't universal.
That's exactly the situation hands-on sorting help exists for — someone to work through it with you at your pace, help decide what goes where, and point you to the right local destination for each category, without judgement and without a deadline.
For anything that isn't a charity donation, our council bulky waste guide covers what Waltham Forest, Redbridge and Epping Forest District will actually collect — and what they won't.