Blackburn with Darwen Council burial and cremation fees to rise

Blackburn with Darwen Council has proposed increases in charges for burials and cremations, effective from the start of February. The borough’s executive member for environment and operations, Cllr Jim Smith, announced at the start of the year that charges for burials and cremations will rise by roughly 6%. Cllr Smith attributed the rise in burial and cremation rates to high energy prices and inflation, which have caused costs within the council’s bereavement services to also increase. The local authority outlined that adult cremation will rise by 6.52% from £920 to £980; purchasing a grave will rise £6.2% from £1,450 to £1,540; and single burials will rise £6.78% from £590 to £630. While the increased rates are expected to generate an additional £130k annually for the council, the original price for a grave purchase was set to rise to £1,600 but was corrected at the committee after it was highlighted the increase was incorrect. The Call In Committee, which was held on Thursday 21 December, was requested by Livesey with Pleasington Conservative Councillor Mark Russell who accused the authority’s Labour leaders of seeking to “profiteer from death”. The ‘call-in’ request was backed by five other Conservative councillors, who believed the proposed increases were too large. On 21 December, the proposals were passed with a majority of seven to one, with one councillor abstaining from the vote. Conservative Cllr Paul Marrow of Livesey with Pleasington said: “This is a very sad decision. We feel it is just greed by the council to be putting up the prices like they have done, after just announcing an increase in council tax for next year too. It’s nothing but greed. They’ve found a cash cow and they’re milking it.” Cllr Russell added: "I'm disappointed that they didn't refer this back to the executive member. When they're already budgeting for a £1m a year profit from burials and cremations, it's profiteering from death and there's no moral justification for it. But, at least they have rectified the graves fees to £1,540 instead of £1,600." Cllr Smith responded: “2023/24 has been a challenging year financially due to the soaring cost of inflation and the impact this has had on budgets, in particular, the cost of goods and services, vehicles, fuel and utility costs. "Increased costs and cuts to funding have hit all councils hard and Blackburn with Darwen is no exception. We expect 2024/25 to be just as challenging. Faced with some difficult decisions, it’s clear that increasing some fees and charges is preferable to cutting services – and this view is shared by those residents who took part in our recent budget consultation."

Blackburn with Darwen Council burial and cremation fees to rise

High energy prices and inflation have caused costs within the council’s bereavement services to also increase

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