AFTER an extensive consultation process with local residents, an application has been submitted to Thurrock Council for a new crematorium to be built in the borough.

A public consultation carried out in the summer of 2022 showed "strong support" for a crematorium to be built on land to the east of Orsett, to the west of the A128 Brentwood Road..

Crematorium developer Elegy held an exhibition in March this year of its plans, which was attended by 50 local residents, who recognised that a new crematorium was needed for the area.

The district does not currently have a crematorium of its own.

The closest crematorium in the west of Thurrock is at Corbets Tey (pictured) in Havering, to the east it is Pitsea in Basildon.

Currently bereaved families are served by Basildon (Pitsea) or South Essex (Upminster), with Brentwood and Chelmsford offering more remote choices.

Following feedback received during the exhibition and further consultations with residents over many months, the developer has responded by proposing extra landscaping to screen any views of the crematorium from the roads and nearby neighbours, as well as improving access with the addition of a cycle path.

Support has also come from local undertakers.

John Brand, the managing director of LE Brand and Sons of Stanford-le-Hope, has written in to the council offering his "full support for the plan", saying that a Thurrock crematorium was long overdue and he priased "the pleasing look of the modern design" which "will blend into its quiet natural environment."

Jeremy West leads West and Coe Funeral Directors, which has 24 branches throughout Essex and London. 

He said that "provision of a new crematorium in Thurrock is desperately needed" and "would provide essential new capacity".

He added the plans "would greatly improve the welfare of the bereaved by offering a quieter local service able to meet today's expectations."

Richard Evans, Managing Director of Elegy, who has been a crematorium developer and operator for over 25 years, said: "Residents are understandably cautious when any new development is proposed. That is why we have taken extra time to improve our proposals in light of residents' comments, to make sure that our application meets the needs of the bereaved whilst limiting any impact on our neighbours.

"It is time for bereaved families in Thurrock to have access to a convenient local crematorium, free from the long journeys and the stretched and, in some cases, tired facilities of existing crematoria."

The new state-of-the-art facility will sit in its own discrete setting. Landscaping will include formal and informal footpaths, seating areas within woodland glades, tree planting, areas of species-rich wildflower meadow, a screening woodland backdrop on the southern and western sides of the site, and a sustainable drainage system which flows into carefully designed ponds.

The crematorium's emissions will be Net Zero from the first year of operation. An additional estimated 55.4 Tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions will be saved every year by road users no longer having to travel to a crematorium further away.

Vehicular access, highway safety and active travel opportunities have all been explored and incorporated. The proposals include a new section of informal cycle path off Conways Road and a right run reserve lane on the A128 Brentwood Road which is monitored by average speed cameras at 50mph.

Residents can view and comment on the application via this link.