BEREAVED FAMILIES SOON TO FACE INCREASED CHARGES AT GRIMSBY CREMATORIUM

The setting of Grimsby Crematorium

THE cost of dying is set to increase in North East Lincolnshire.

The  fee for a typical 40-minute funeral and cremation at Grimsby Crematorium is currently  £705.

But NELC plans to increase this to £757 from April.

Two years ago, controversy erupted when it emerged that  an additional £200 fee was being imposed on grieving families if funerals overran the 40-minute allocation - even by a few seconds.

Former council leader Cllr Keith Brookes took up cudgels on behalf of complainants, maintaining that it showed lack of compassion to hit bereaved families in the pocket at a time when they were particularly vulnerable.

But this fee - effectively a fine - will rise to £215 unless Cllr Brookes' Conservative, colleague, Cllr Stewart Swinburne, who will make the decision, decides otherwise at a meeting next month.