Stourbridge reopens its doors

It is often said that timing is everything, with regards to our crematorium refurbishment project, I don’t think ours could have been worse!

Stourbridge crematorium opened in 1960 following extensive work carried out to incorporate a crematory building onto what, since 1879, had served as the town’s burial chapel. Since opening, the crematorium has welcomed bereaved families from the local community and farther afield and currently carries out approximately 1,300 cremations each year.

In 1995, two L & P Furnace cremators were installed at the crematorium. The machines were reliable, regularly serviced

and looked after by the suppliers, Kevin Evans and Malcolm Baines (latterly of The Phoenix Partnership). The longevity of the machines is a testament to the build quality and to the expert maintenance carried out by Kevin and Malcolm.

Although having a recommended operational life of 15 years, with regular maintenance - including the usual new hearths and relines, we nursed the machines with the aim of extending their lifespan up until late 2019 early 2020. We had not however planned for the events of last year which, although challenging, further demonstrated the resilience and goodwill of those involved in bereavement services.

We are fortunate in Dudley that local councillors and senior managers acknowledge and support the need for excellent services for the bereaved, and this was once again demonstrated by the willingness to significantly invest in facilities at Stourbridge crematorium. Following the usual capital budget allocation process, the council committed to upgrading the cremation facilities whilst, at the same time, taking the opportunity to extend the chapel capacity from sixty-eight to ninety. Amongst other improvements, building a new flower room and road re-surfacing were also included in the £2m project.

The council accepted that it would be necessary to close the crematorium for the duration of the work but as we own and manage two crematoria (Gornal Wood being the other) and originally intended to carry out the work during the generally ‘quieter’ spring and summer months, we hoped that disruption would be minimal. The project was explained in a number of press releases and communicated to all local funeral directors who I must say, have been both understanding and supportive throughout.

As COVID-19 started to take hold in March, we made the decision to postpone the upgrade work and attempt to extend the life of the existing cremators even further - despite their deteriorating condition, as we recognised the disruption that would be caused by closing in March. This was a huge risk which funeral directors supported, and which fortunately paid off. We did however ultimately have to close the crematorium in August as we feared a major breakdown was imminent. So, onto the project. One of the major challenges was that the building was not originally purpose-built. Although not listed, the Victorian chapel is considered to have local historic importance with the borough’s planners therefore all changes had to be agreed with both the planning and historic environment divisions. In addition, COVID-19 caused a myriad of issues such as a lack of supplies and labour, restrictions on the number of people able to work at any one time and the need for additional health and safety controls. Furthermore, the existing cremators had originally been cleverly shoehorned into a relatively small crematory; this proved to be problematic

as the new cremators are larger, hence the need for a building extension. The number of challenges however only really hit home as the project progressed.

The early discussions were around the scope of the work. Should we fit mercury abatement plant, how many oversized cremators should we install and what can the industry expect to face in the coming years - particularly in relation to environmental emissions.

We liaised regularly with our professional industry bodies and commissioned Martin Street of Rose Project Management to work with us. Martin provided useful, professional information on the national picture and gave his personal views based on his knowledge of the sector; all were duly considered.

From the outset, we were extremely aware of the need to manage public expectations. By this I mean we were conscious of the need to show value for money improvements; something that would be difficult if most of the expenditure was allocated to ‘behind-the-scenes’ facilities. We therefore included a new glazed dome canopy leading up to the doors of the chapel which accommodates a digital media screen and speakers to enable those who are unable to join the congregation in the chapel to watch and listen to the funeral service. Beneath the canopy is a disability scooter charging port and there is a port for electric car fast-charging located on the main drive.

The Book of Remembrance room is now more easily accessible by a longer and shallower ramp. The toilets and waiting area - which could only previously be accessed via the main front door, are now independent of the chapel and fully accessible to those with a disability.

The chapel retains the magnificent Victorian vaulted ceiling and many of the original features. It now also provides visitors with the added benefits of modern LED lighting and state-of-the-art, energy-efficient air conditioning and heating systems. The speaker’s lectern has been fully mechanised and linked to extensive multimedia resources. Our continued trust in the Obitus music set-up allows the bereaved a choice of almost limitless music and the opportunity to show family videos and slideshows as part of the service. The traditional organ remains, as does the webcast facility.

The original catafalque, which had previously been accessed by a step, has been replaced with a modern motorised process. The step has been removed and the catafalque - now at floor level, can easily be accessed by funeral directors and mourners. The final phase of the project will be the installation of a new and larger flower room.

Alongside our desire to enhance customer facilities, we were also extremely aware of the environmental agenda. As we all know, this issue has gathered pace over the past few years and as an industry, due largely to the emissions that result from cremation, we are fully expecting additional government guidance on the role crematoria will be expected to play to further reduce harmful gases. As the authority met