Bath & North East Somerset Council has donated £10,000, raised from the recycling of metals reclaimed from Bath’s Haycombe Crematorium, to a Bath charity which offers a support group for adults who have been affected by a suicide loss.
Bath Survivors of Bereavement by Suicide (SoBS) provides a safe and comforting space for adults to share their feelings with others who have had the same experience.
Ann, a volunteer with the group, said: “We are delighted to be awarded a grant from the ICCM Recycling Scheme which ensures our group can continue and helps us plan ahead for how we can best support people.”
The charity is the latest to benefit from money raised by the recycling of common items like medical pins, metal plates and artificial joints which are retrieved from the cremated remains of a loved one and recycled through a national scheme.
Councillor Dine Romero, cabinet member for Children and Young People, Communities and Culture said: “I’m delighted we have been able to support Bath SoBS. It’s incredibly traumatic to lose someone to suicide and the experience has a long-lasting effect on mental wellbeing. Knowing you are not alone and sharing your feelings with others who have been through the same experience can help people cope better.”
The not-for-profit Recycling of Metals Scheme is run by the Institute of Cemetery and Crematorium Management of which Bath & North East Somerset Council is a member. Members of the scheme collect the metal from the cremators and the money raised from recycling is divided between ICCM members for distribution among charities.
Councillor David Wood, cabinet member for Neighbourhood Services said: “We always respectfully retrieve the cremated remains of a loved one, but metal items used as part of surgery are often recovered from the cremator. The most responsible way to dispose of them is to recycle them. We feel it’s only right the money raised goes to support bereavement charities and I hope people who are bereaved take comfort from that.”
To qualify for donations from the scheme, charities are selected on the basis they have to assist the bereaved or those who are terminally ill.
Local charities, which meet the criteria can get in touch with staff at Haycombe Cemetery and Crematorium on 01225 396020 or email cemeteries_crematorium@bathnes.gov.uk
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