Caerphilly County Borough Council has agreed to scrap charges for the burial of children at cemeteries across the borough.
At the council’s cabinet meeting on Wednesday February 1, it was unanimously agreed to remove the interment fee relating to the burial of children up to and including the age of 16.
The fee has been scrapped with immediate effect.
In December last year, Swansea and Torfaen councils made similar changes to their burial policies after Swansea East MP Carolyn Harris led a debate in parliament in November calling on the UK Government to scrap the charge.
Ms Harris revealed she had to borrow money to bury her eight-year-old son who was killed in a road accident in 1989.
Leader of Caerphilly County Borough Council, Cllr Keith Reynolds, said: “The well-publicised national campaign led by Carolyn Harris MP to abolish charges for the interment of children certainly provided us with the opportunity to review our own service, and I’m pleased that members wholeheartedly backed removing these charges – it certainly is the right thing to do.”
Cllr Nigel George, Cabinet Member for Community and Leisure Services, added: “The impact on families of losing a child is devastating, and while removing the cost of the interment certainly won’t make the loss any easier, it is one less thing for families to have to worry about at such a difficult time in their lives.”
More information on the services offered by the council’s bereavement services team can be found at www.caerphilly.gov.uk or by calling 01495 235 189.