Bereaved to benefit from cremation and coroner service review

New cremation rules and a review of out-of-hours coroner services have been announced with the aim of increasing support for grieving relatives.

Changes to rules for cremations will be discussed later this year and will include government proposals to consider the issues disclosed in an independent report into the practices at Emstrey Crematorium in Shropshire.

An inquiry into infant cremations at Emstrey found that the methods the crematorium employed between 1996 and 2012 prevented families from having the ashes of their children returned to them.

Recommendations from the Emstrey Crematorium report and a separate investigation in Scotland by Lord Bonomy, the Infant Cremation Commission, will inform the cremation law proposals which will be up for discussion later this year.

A separate government review will investigate the out of hours services provided by coroners in England and Wales to ensure that they are sensitive to the needs of the entire community, including individuals whose religious beliefs require burials to take place quickly.

Justice minister Caroline Dinenage said: 'I am taking action to make sure that after a cremation, infant ashes are returned to bereaved families. Parents should not have to experience any additional grief like those affected by the issues in Emstrey have faced.'

The justice secretary, Michael Gove, has also met with faith groups to discuss improving coroner services and developing a London-wide service to assist the entire community, paving the way for the review of out-of hours coroner services.

These changes follow a range of recent improvements to services for bereaved people, including the creation of a new national code of practice for coroners.

Esther Nimmo is an editorial assistant at Solicitors Journal

esther.nimmo@solicitorsjournal.co.uk @EstherNimmo