FINAL preparations are underway for a major refurbishment of Worcester Crematorium.
The work, which will see new electric cremators installed at the Astwood Road site, begins on Monday August 4 and will last until summer 2026.
During that time, funeral services will be held at the KGV Hub in Ash Avenue, off Brickfields Road, seven minutes’ walk from the crematorium.
The grounds of Astwood Cemetery will be open as normal throughout the refurbishment, with visitors having full access to the graves of their loved ones and the majority of the memorials at the site.
Worcester City Council’s leader Coun Lynn Denham said: “Refurbishing Worcester’s much-loved crematorium is obviously a very sensitive piece of work and we are committed to carrying out this essential project with respect for the many people who have a connection with the crematorium itself and with Astwood Cemetery.
“At the same time, we are also working to keep the impact of this work on people living in the area to a minimum. We will be giving local residents regular updates on how the project is progressing and alerting them when any disruption is expected.”
The first phase of the work, running from August 4 to August 15, will see National Grid installing an upgraded power supply at the entrance to the cemetery. As part of this, four-way traffic lights will be put in place at the Astwood Road roundabout and traffic will be one-way only along Brickfields Road, between the junction with Blackpole Road and the roundabout. A diversion will be in place, along the northern part of Astwood Road, Bilford Road and the southern part of Blackpole Road.
Key features of the Astwood Crematorium refurbishment include two new electric cremators installed to replace the current three gas-powered ones, refurbishment of the chapel, a new chapel garden with a Japanese theme, an extension to the window area that looks out from the chapel to that garden, landscaping improvements to boost biodiversity at the cemetery grounds, and solar panels on the roof to improve the building’s efficiency.
The refurbishment project is receiving a £1.49 million grant awarded through the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme. This supports energy-efficiency projects, and is run by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero and delivered by Salix.
