With work poised to begin on your new bereavement centre in Mepal. We want to share with you some of the beautiful shots taken at the site and outline the plans for its development.
Lakeside bereavement centre video
The new bereavement centre will include a crematorium, natural burial area, pet cemetery, a function room for wakes, a memorial tributes walkway and a remembrance garden, all set within flower meadows and wildlife walks, with views overlooking a lake.
As well as giving residents a beautiful and peaceful setting in which to say goodbye to and remember their loved ones, the brownfield site is being skilfully developed to enhance the significant biodiversity and ecology that exists alongside the lake.
The council is working with The Wildlife Trust to ensure endangered plants and animals, which have moved in since the site was last used and now restrict its potential for development, are protected and enhanced.
Many of the materials being used in the build and landscaping are recycled, including recycled plastic waste used for cladding, and a bund of earth which was extracted during the building of Angel Drove Car Park in Ely. This will be used to create an area for planting native trees and wildflowers.
Council Leader, Cllr Anna Bailey, said: "Losing a loved one and coming face to face with grief is often the hardest thing any of us encounter. Death is very much a part of life and something we all need to come to terms with. But the people of East Cambridgeshire must often travel long distances, outside the area we love and are familiar with, to say our final goodbyes. This new bereavement centre will provide us with a beautiful, tranquil and peaceful setting where we not only go to say farewell to loved ones, but can return to again and again to keep them alive in our hearts. This is a unique offering, and, in my mind, there is nothing more precious we can give."
The bereavement centre is being built for the benefit of the whole community.
Saying goodbye to a loved one is never easy. Here you’ll be able to go back and enjoy the beauty of this unique lakeside setting.
As work progresses, we will keep residents informed of our plans and look at ways we can work together to provide the best service we can for the people of East Cambridgeshire.