Crematorium donation to bereavement charity

The Council’s Kent and Sussex Crematorium has donated £11,600 to CHUMs.

The charity offering a specialist bereavement service in Kent and Medway which supports children, young people and their families.

The donation is thanks to the generosity of families who have kindly made the decision to recycle metals used in the construction of their loved one’s coffin, and orthopaedic implants and pacemakers, following cremation.

Councillor Pamela Wilkinson, Cabinet Member for Sports, Leisure and Health presented a cheque to Nicki Whatling from CHUMs at the crematorium on 13 November 2024.

Councillor Wilkinson said: ‘It was an honour to make this donation to CHUMs and to meet Nicki to hear about the work the charity does. They offer such valuable support to young people at a most difficult period of their life. My grateful thanks go to the bereaved families who made this donation possible through their support of the recycling scheme.’

Kent and Sussex Crematorium is part of the national recycling scheme run by the Institute of Cemetery and Crematorium Management (ICCM). Following a cremation there may be metals from orthopaedic implants such as joint replacements, as well as metal from the coffin which can be recycled. Metals are only recycled with the express consent of bereaved families and the money raised is gifted to local bereavement charities.

Since it started in 2007, the ICCM Recycling of Metals Scheme has raised over £19 million for bereavement-related charities. This incredible amount is made possible by bereaved relatives giving their consent for the metals to be recycled, and by cremation authorities and companies signing up to the scheme.