New memorial bench to hold ashes

Each of the legs holds the ashes of two people and a 10-year lease costs £800

Bereaved families in Hull are being offered a new way to remember loved ones - a granite bench which can hold the cremated remains of four people.

The remembrance bench is designed to help families overcome the problem of who keeps the ashes, Hull council said.

"We hope they find this a sensitive and thoughtful solution to a problem they may experience at a difficult time in their lives," said a council spokesman.

Each of the legs holds the ashes of two people and a 10-year lease costs £800.

To lease the whole bench, holding the remains of four people, would cost £1,839 for a 10-year lease.

Bereavement officers at Hull City Council worked with Hull-based memorials specialist The Columbaria Company to create the granite remembrance bench.

'Difficult decision'

One has already been installed at the city's Eastern cemetery with another due to be delivered to the Northern cemetery.

More will be commissioned depending on demand, the council said.

Councillor Dave Woods, portfolio holder for the environment, said: "The council is always seeking ways to improve its services and it is pleasing to see that the bereavement service team, and their partner, are leading the way with what is to believed to be the first such memorial bench in the UK."

Nikki Hewitt, bereavement services manager, added: "Often bereaved families like to commission a bench to be placed in the cemetery or crematorium in memory of their loved ones who have been cremated.

"This can lead to a difficult decision, particularly if there are a number of bereaved relatives, about who has the cremated remains or what to do with them.

"The bench is the ideal solution as it has two secure vaults in its feet in which cremated remains for approximately four people can be interred.

"Additionally, as the bench is made from granite, it is extremely low maintenance."