Wellingborough crematorium near to completion in preparation for summer opening

Members of Wellingborough Council’s resources committee will discuss the progress being made on the new crematorium near Great Doddington at its meeting next week.

A report prepared for the meeting says Wates has completed the design and build contract and formally handed the building over to the council on May 31, which was one month ahead of schedule.

It says there are a small number of ‘snagging’ issues, but Wates are working to ensure these are all resolved prior to the start of the operations.

The crematorium will be known as Nene Valley Crematorium, and will be run by Wellingborough Bereavement Services with Tracy Lawrence recently appointed to manage the day-to-day operations.

Recruitment has been completed for a team of 4.5 full-time staff to work with Mrs Lawrence.

There are a few final arrangements that need to be put into place before the company can start to trade and take its first bookings, but these should be completed in the coming weeks.

It is anticipated that the first service will take place in mid to late July.

Before the operational start date, the company is planning on holding some official open days for the crematorium advisory group, members, staff, key stakeholders and local people to have a guided tour of the site.

However, the official opening of the site will be held at a later date in the summer or early autumn once the site has become operational.

Committee members will be asked to recommend a number of proposals in relation to the crematorium at the meeting, including the pricing structure.

It has been proposed that the fee for a cremation for someone over-16 with a 40-minute funeral service is £875.

If approved, this would be more than the £806 fee for over-18s at Kettering Crematorium, but less than the £949 fee at the crematorium in Northampton.

The resources committee meeting starts at 7pm on Wednesday, June 29, at Swanspool House in Wellingborough.