Crematorium with new technology to open

1 day ago

Joe GerrardLocal Democracy Reporting Service

The crematorium is set to feature audio-visual technology, which allows personalised themes to be displayed on a canvas at the front of the chapel

Westerleigh Group A purple landscape featuring numerous lavender bushes is displayed on a large canvas at the front of the chapel. In the middle of the chapel, there is a wooden coffin, and to the front there are four rows of benches. — The crematorium is set to feature audio-visual technology, which allows personalised themes to be displayed on a canvas at the front of the chapel

A new crematorium is set to open on the outskirts of York this winter.

North York Crematorium and Memorial Gardens, in Sand Hutton, will feature technology which allows bereaved family and friends to put on personalised funeral services.

Ed Lane, managing director of Westerleigh Group, which is behind the venue, said the new site was an "important step".

It comes after the facility, which will seat 112 guests, was approved on appeal in 2024 after North Yorkshire councillors refused plans the previous year, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Westerleigh Group operates 42 crematoria and cemeteries across the UK

Westerleigh Group An impression showing how the North York Crematorium and Memorial Gardens, in Sand Hutton, North Yorkshire, could look. There is a large garden in front of the chapel's entrance, with trees, flowers and hedges. — Westerleigh Group operates 42 crematoria and cemeteries across the UK

The crematorium is being built on a 13-acre site off the A64 near the York Biotech Campus and the village of Sand Hutton.

Westerleigh Group said the location had been chosen to make the facilities accessible for families in York and North Yorkshire, but they would also be available for people further afield.

Services will typically be an hour long, with the option to extend them.

There will also be a welcome garden at the front of the crematorium, providing an outdoor gathering area for people to meet and contemplate all year round.

The company said the site in Sand Hutton had been sustainably designed and would be among the most environmentally friendly crematoria in the UK.

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