City out-of-hours burial service urged for different faith groups

Currently the number of requests for such burials across the area averages 12 a year, members of Wakefield Council's Cabinet committee will be told.

They will be asked on Tuesday to decide whether to back officers' recommendations that such a service is set up on weekend, evenings during daylight hours and bank holidays, excluding Christmas Day.

A report to members of authority's cabinet committee says the service is needed to cater for the need to provide emergency burials outside of normal working hours and deal with the changing demands that are being made of the service.

Presently the council's bereavement service provides a service during the normal working week, excluding weekends and bank holidays. However there have been a number of exceptions when emergency burials have taken place on Saturday, Sunday and during the evening.

Current arrangements with the district's funeral directors mean that 72 hours notice is given for a burial, allowing sufficient time for a grave to be dug at an agreed location. In addition at certain cemeteries there are a small number of stock graves available for use at short notice.

To allow a burial to take place the deceased must have a registrar's certificate issued by the council's registrar, or in a case involving an inquest, a coroner's order for burial.

The report adds: "In the absence of a council policy for the provision of out of hour's burials the bereavement service team have made every effort to provide a service.

"Staff have voluntarily attended burials on evenings during daylight hours, Saturdays and Sundays. Providing a burial on the same day as the death has proved to be problematic.

"Same day burials require a doctor to attend to issue a death certificate, the death to be registered and a certificate to bury to be issued, staff to attend to open the grave/vault and to be available to attend the burial.

"Staff responded to a recent request for a same day burial on a Saturday, however necessary certificates could not be issued and this led to the funeral which had already arrived at the cemetery being postponed until the Sunday."

New charges, if backed when council Cabinet members meet on Tuesday, would include additional charges that would cover the increased costs incurred by the council in providing the service.

Currently it costs 1,842 to provide a burial service on a Saturday, Sunday, bank holiday or evening, but if the new service is adopted then the charges would increase to cover the call-out of staff.

It is proposed the new charges, if the service is adopted, would be 2,118 on a Saturday or evening and 2,210 on a Sunday or a Bank Holiday.

The evening option will only be available during daylight hours and burials would not take place on Christmas Day. The report says discussions with neighbouring authorities has found they offer differing services, with some already offering an out-of-hours service.

The report adds: "Any option chosen would need to be self-financing through the incorporation of appropriate additional charges.

"These charges will be strictly limited to reflect the increased cost incurred by the council when providing this non standard service."

However the report stresses that the out-of-hours service would only be available according to whether staff were available.