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Waseley Hills Crematorium has celebrated its one-year anniversary serving the communities of South Birmingham, Bromsgrove and North Worcestershire.
It is part of Westerleigh Group, an operator of crematoria and cemeteries, with 37 sites across England, Scotland and Wales.
The crematorium has engaged with the local community through making donations from its metal recycling scheme. With the consent of families, metals recovered during cremation are recycled and any money raised is used to support charities and other causes.
The site has also made donations to a range of different charities and organisations, from foodbanks to a football team and animal rehoming charities to organisations which support people living with complex disabilities.
Site manager Joy Edgington said: “We are proud of how we have engaged with our bereaved families and local communities in our first year. We’re a welcoming place where people find comfort, not just on the day of their loved one’s final farewell but at other times, to remember a loved one or just have quiet moments of reflection in a fitting and peaceful environment.
“We have helped provide many uniquely personal funeral services from rainbow theming the chapel to accommodating open coffins when requested. We will always strive to assist families should they wish to have something a little different, in addition to accommodating those who still prefer traditional funerals. We’ve brought people together for Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, at Christmas and for Remembrance Day and we enjoyed a successful community open day in August.”
She added: “There are a number of other ways in which we are engaging with local people. We are currently running free art workshops for the bereaved, and we have also invited the community to help shape the design of a planned Covid-19 memorial at our site, as a lasting tribute to honour those who were lost – and those who worked so hard to help others – during the pandemic.
“We have been working hard to show that we are not here just to provide comfort to families and friends on the day they say their final farewells to loved ones. Our support goes a lot further than that. We’ve only been open for a year but have been welcomed into the community in that time, and we are only just getting started.”
