Chronological summary of amendments to the Cremation Acts and Regulations

AMENDMENTS TO THE CREMATION ACTS

Perjury Act 1911 (c.6) s.17, Sch.1

Cremation Act, 1902, s. 8(2) made it an offence to make "any false declaration or representation" with a view to procuring a cremation. Perjury Act, 1911, removed the words "declaration or" from s. 8(2).

Scottish Board of Health Act 1919 s 4(1)(a)(5), Sch 1

Ministry of Health Act 1919 (c. 21) s 3(1)(a) Sch 1 -transfer of functions

Births and Deaths Registration Act 1926 (c. 48) s 10

Cremation Act, 1902, s. 7 empowered the Secretary of State to make regulations about several aspects of cremation. Births and Deaths Registration Act, 1926, s. 10 extended the Secretary of State's power under section 7 to allow the Secretary to make regulations for the purpose of applying the provisions of the 1926 Act to cases where human remains were disposed of by cremation.

Statute Law Revision Act 1927 (c. 42)

Cremation Act 1902 s. 3 provided that, in the application of the Act to Scotland, the expression "Secretary of State" should mean the Secretary for Scotland. Statute Law Revision Act 1927 repealed this provision.

Cremation Act 1902 s. 15 provided that the Act was to come into force on 1 April 1903. Statute Law Revision Act 1927 repealed this provision.

Reorganisation of Offices (Scotland) Act 1928 s 1

False Oaths (Scotland) Act 1933 (c. 20) Sch - repeal in part s 8

London County Council (General Powers) Act 1935 (c. xxxiii) s 64

Cremation Act 1902 s. 5 prohibited the building of a crematorium, among other things, within 200 yards of a dwelling house except with the consent of the landlord, tenant and occupier of the house. London County Council (General Powers) Act 1935 s. 64 reduced this limit to 100 yards in the case of crematoria built by borough councils. It also allowed a crematorium to be built within 100 yards of a dwelling house if the building of the house had begun after the council had given public notice of its application for approval of the plans and site of the crematorium.

Mortlake Crematorium Act 1936 (c. xxi) s 34

Cremation Act 1902 s. 5 prohibited the building of a crematorium, among other things, within 200 yards of a dwelling house except with the consent of the landlord, tenant and occupier of the house. Mortlake Crematorium Act 1936, in providing for a crematorium to be established by the Mortlake Crematorium Board on land described in a schedule to the 1936 Act, excluded any crematorium built on that land from the application of s. 5, and in respect of any other crematorium built by the Board reduced the limit of 200 yards set by s. 5 to 100 yards. It also allowed a crematorium to be built within 100 yards of a dwelling house if the building of the house had begun after the Board had given public notice of its application for approval of the plans and site of the crematorium.

Reorganisation of Offices (Scotland) Act 1939 s 1

Ministry of Health Provisional Order Confirmation (Mortlake Crematorium Board) Act, 1946 (c. xv)

The Mortlake Crematorium Act 1936 had empowered the local authorities of Acton, Barnes, Hammersmith and Richmond to join together to form a board to establish a crematorium. The Ministry of Health Provisional Order Confirmation (Mortlake Crematorium Board) Act 1946 allowed the local authority of Brentford and Chiswick to become a member of the Board.

South-West Middlesex Crematorium Act 1947 (c. ix) s 40

Cremation Act 1902 s. 5 prohibited the building of a crematorium, among other things, within 200 yards of a dwelling house except with the consent of the landlord, tenant and occupier of the house. South-West Middlesex Crematorium Act 1947, in providing for a crematorium to be established by the South-West Middlesex Crematorium Board on land described in a schedule to the 1947 Act, excluded any crematorium built on that land from the application of s. 5, and in respect of any other crematorium built by the Board reduced the limit of 200 yards set by s. 5 to 100 yards. It also allowed a crematorium to be built within 100 yards of a dwelling house if the building of the house had begun after the Board had given public notice of its application for approval of the plans and site of the crematorium.

Criminal Justice Act 1948 (c. 58) ss 1(1) and 1(2)

Cremation Act 1902 s 8(2) made it an offence punishable with imprisonment for two years, without or without hard labour, to make a false statement in order to procure a cremation. S. 8(3) made it an offence, punishable with penal servitude for five years, to make a declaration or give a certificate under the Act, or to try to procure a cremation, in order to conceal the commission of a crime or impede the prosecution of an offence. Criminal Justice Act 1948 s 1(2) abolished hard labour. S. 1(1) abolished penal servitude and replaced it with imprisonment.

Finance Act 1949 (c. 47) ss 52(9) and (10), Sch 11, Part V

Cremation Act 1902 s 7 empowered the Secretary of State to make regulations for, among other things, the keeping of registers of cremations and applied the provisions of the Stamp Act, 1891, to such registers as if they were registers of burials. The Finance Act 1949 ss 52(9) and (10) removed the words relating to the Stamp Act from s 7.

Criminal Justice Act (Scotland) 1949 (c. 94) s 16(2)

Ministry of Health Provisional Order Confirmation (South-West Middlesex Crematorium Board) Act, 1950 (c. ix)

The South-West Middlesex Crematorium Act 1947 had empowered the local authorities of Feltham, Heston and Isleworth, Southall, Sunbury and Twickenham to join together to form a board to establish a crematorium. Ministry of Health Provisional Order Confirmation (South-West Middlesex Crematorium Board) Act, 1950 allowed the local authorities of Hayes and Harlington, Staines and Yiewsley, and West Drayton to become members of the Board.

Merchants House of Glasgow (Crematorium) Confirmation Order Act, 1950 (c. xxvi)

Cremation Act 1902 s. 5 prohibited the building of a crematorium, among other things, within 200 yards of a dwelling house except with the consent of the landlord, tenant and occupier of the house. Merchants House of Glasgow (Crematorium) Confirmation Order Act, 1950, in permitting the Merchants House to establish a crematorium on land, described in a schedule to the 1950 Act, in its cemetery in Glasgow (the Glasgow Necropolis), excluded any crematorium built on that land from the application of s. 5.

Manchester Corporation Act, 1950, s. 52 (c. lvii)

Cremation Act 1902 s. 5 prohibited the building of a crematorium, among other things, within 200 yards of a dwelling house except with the consent of the landlord, tenant and occupier of the house. Manchester Corporation Act, 1950, s. 52 reduced this limit to 100 yards in the case of crematoria built by the Corporation of Manchester. It also allowed a crematorium to be built within 100 yards of a dwelling house if the building of the house had begun after the council had given public notice of its application for approval of the plans and site of the crematorium.

S.I. 1951/753 (1951, 1, 1354) - transfer of functions

S.I. 1951/1900 (1951, 1, 1347) - transfer of functions

Cremation Act 1952 (c. 31)

The proviso to s. 4 of the Cremation Act, 1902, provided that no crematorium provided by a burial authority (as defined by the Act) could be used until its plans and site had been officially approved and it had been certified to the Secretary of State to be complete, in accordance with the plans, and properly equipped to dispose of human remains by burning. Cremation Act, 1952, s. 1(1) introduced an almost identical provision for any crematoria (i.e not only those provided by burial authorities) to be established in the future and limited the application of the proviso to s. 4 of the 1902 Act to crematoria established before the coming into operation of the 1952 Act.

S. 7 of Cremation Act, 1902, empowered the Secretary of State to make regulations with respect to, among other things, the declarations that had to be made before a cremation could proceed and provided that such declarations had to by made in accordance with the Statutory Declarations Act, 1835. It also provided that a copy of the regulations should be laid before Parliament and would come into force and have the same effect as if enacted in the 1902 Act unless an address praying for the withholding of the Royal Assent to them was made within forty days. S. 8(3) made it an offence to make such a declaration with intent to conceal the commission or impede the prosecution of an offence. Cremation Act, 1952, s. 2(1) substituted for declarations made in accordance with the 1835 Act applications verified in the manner prescribed in regulations by the Secretary of State and s. 2(3) altered the offence under s. 8(3) of the 1902 Act to making such an application with the specified intent. Cremation Act, 1952, s. 2(2) removed the words which required the laying of the regulations before Parliament and made them subject to annulment by the ordinary negative resolution procedure of either House of Parliament. S. 2(2) also removed the words providing that once in force the Regulations were to have the same effect as if enacted in the 1902 Act.

Cremation Act, 1902, s. 2 provided that the term "burial authority" in the Act meant, among other things, "any local authority maintaining a cemetery under the Public Health (Interments) Act, 1879". Cremation Act, 1952, s. 4(1) extended the definition to include "any council having power to provide a cemetery" under the 1879 Act.

North-East Surrey Crematorium Board Act 1956 (c. lxi) s. 32

S.I. 1965/319, Sch 1 - transfer of functions as to Wales

Criminal Law Act 1967 (c. 58) s. 10(2), Sch. 3, Part III

Cremation Act, 1902, s. 8(3) made it an offence to try to procure a cremation with intent to conceal crime. Criminal Law Act, 1967, repealed this subsection.

Cremation Act, 1952, s. 2(3) had substituted the word "application" for the word "declaration" in Cremation Act, 1902, s. 8(3). Criminal Law Act, 1967, repealed subsection 2(3).

City of London (Various Powers) Act 1969 (c. xxxix) s 5

S.I. 1970/1681 - transfer of functions

Courts Act 1971 (c. 23) s. 56, Sch 8, Part I, Para 2

Cremation Act, 1902, s. 8(1) created several offences which were triable summarily and gave a right of appeal to quarter sessions to anyone convicted of them. Courts Act, 1971, replaced Assizes and Quarter Sessions by the Crown Court, and s. 56, sch. 8, part I, para. 2 of the Act amended s. 8(1) of the 1902 Act accordingly.

Greater London (General Powers) Act 1971 (c. xxviii) s. 7

Cremation Act, 1902, s. 5 prohibited the building of a crematorium, among other things, within 200 yards of a dwelling house except with the consent of the landlord, tenant and occupier of the house. London County Council (General Powers) Act, 1935, s. 64 reduced this limit to 100 yards in the case of crematoria built by borough councils. It also allowed a crematorium to be built within 100 yards of a dwelling house if the building of the house had begun after the council had given public notice of its application for approval of the plans and site of the crematorium. The 1935 Act, however, did not, as the 1902 Act did, contain a definition of the term "crematorium". Greater London Council (General Powers) Act, 1971, s. 7(1) provided one in identical terms to that in the 1902 Act.

The 1971 Act also extended the application, both prospectively and retrospectively, of s. 64 of the 1935 to any crematorium built in Greater London by a Greater London burial authority.

Local Government Act 1972 ( 70) s 214(7), 272(1), sch 26, para 24, sch 30

Cremation Act, 1902, s. 9 provided that a burial authority under the Act which had established a crematorium could levy charges for the use of the crematorium so long as the charges had been approved by the Local Government Board (whose functions had since been taken over by the Secretary of State); and s. 12 provided that in any table of fees for burials which had been made or approved by the Secretary of State a fee could be fixed for a burial service before, at or after a cremation. Local Government Act, 1972, s. 217(1), Sch. 30 removed the requirement of the approval of the Local Government Board from s. 9 of the 1902 Act and the reference to the Secretary of State's making or approval from s. 12. But s. 214(7), sch. 26, para. 24 required a burial authority under the 1902 Act to keep a table of fees and have it available for inspection by the public at all reasonable times.

Cremation Act, 1902, s. 2 contained a definition of the term "burial authority" for the purpose of the Act. Cremation Act, 1952, s. 4 increased the range of bodies that qualified as burial authorities under the Cremation Acts. Subsection 3(2) of the Act provided that Burial Act, 1900, ss 3(1), 3(2) and 3(3), which regulated the fees that could be collected by burial authorities, should apply to the bodies qualifying as burial authorities by virtue of s. 4 of the 1952 Act. Local Government Act, 1972 (which fundamentally altered the structure of cemetery provision in England and Wales), repealed ss. 3(2) of the 1952 Act and provided a fresh extension of the range of bodies that qualified as burial authorities under both Acts.

Local Government Act (Scotland) 1973 (c. 65) s 169(1) - transfer of functions

Statute Law (Repeals) 1978 (c. 45) s 1(1), Sch 1, pt XVII

Cremation Act, 1902, ss. 2 and 3 contained definitions of the term "burial authority" for the purpose of the Act. Cremation Act, 1952, s. 4 had three subsections relating to the definition and powers of burial authorities for the purposes of the Cremation Acts. Statute Law (Repeals) Act, 1978, sch. 1, part XVII repealed the definitions in the 1902 Act and the whole of section 4 of the 1952 Act.

Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980 (c. 65), ss. 194, Sch 34, Part XVI

Cremation Act, 1952, s. 1(1) provided that no new crematorium could be used until, among other things, its site and plans had been approved by the Minister of Housing and Local Government nor until the body establishing it had certified to the Secretary of State that the crematorium accorded with the approved plans. Local Government, Planning and Land Act, 1980, removed these requirements from the subsection.

Cremation Act, 1902, s. 4 empowered burial authorities to establish crematoria. A proviso to the section prohibited the use of such a crematorium until the plans had been approved and the crematorium had been certified to be in accordance with the plans and properly equipped for its purpose. Cremation Act, 1952, s. 1(2) provided that this proviso would not apply to any crematoria established after the 1952 Act came into force. Local Government, Planning and Land Act, 1980, repealed s. 1(2) of the 1952 Act.

Cremation Act, 1952, provided for the Minister of Local Government and Housing to perform certain functions in relation to crematoria. Subsection 1(3) provided that, for Scottish purposes, the term "Secretary of State" should be substituted for the term "Minister of Housing and Local Government". Local Government, Planning and Land Act, 1980, repealed this subsection.

Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act (S) 1981 (c. 23) ss 25, 41, sch 2, para. 3, sch 4 - repeat in part s 9

Essex Act 1987 (c. xx), s. 50

Cremation Act 1902 s. 5 prohibited the building of a crematorium, among other things, within 200 yards of a dwelling house except with the consent of the landlord, tenant and occupier of the house. Essex Act, 1987, s. 50(1) excluded any alteration, extension or reconstruction of Colchester Council's crematorium at Mersea Road, Colchester, from the application of s. 5. Section 50(2) of the Act also provided that no part of the crematorium as altered,extended or reconstructed should be nearer to any house than any part of the crematorium was when the 1987 Act came into force.

Coroners Act 1988 (c. 13) s 36(1), Sch 3 para 2

Cremation Act, 1902, s. 10 provided that nothing in the Act should interfere with the jurisdiction of any coroner under the Coroners Act, 1887, or any Act amending that Act. Coroners Act 1988, in consolidating the statutory law relating to coroners, repealed previous Coroners Acts. Section 36(1), sch. 3, para. 2 of the 1988 Act substituted for the reference to the previous Coroners Acts in the 1902 Act one to the 1988 Act.

Church of England (Miscellaneous Provisions) 1992 (No 1) ss 2(5), 17(2), sch 4 pt 2

Cremation Act, 1902, s. 11 relieved the incumbent of an ecclesiastical parish of any obligation to perform a funeral service, before, at or after the cremation in the ground of a burial authority, of any parishioner of his or of anyone dying in his parish, and permitted any ordained Anglican priest to perform one in his stead, with the consent of the bishop and at the request of the deceased's executor, the burial authority or anyone having charge of the cremation or burial.

Statute Law (Repeals) Act 1993 (c. 50) s. 1(1), sch 1, pt 1

Cremation Act, 1902, s. 8(1) created several offences triable summarily and gave a right of appeal to the Crown Court to anyone convicted of them. Statute Law (Repeals) Act 1993 s. 1(1) repealed the words giving the right of appeal.

Certification of Death (Scotland) Act 2011 (asp 11)

As a result of the Scotland Act 1998, the Scottish Parliament acquired power to amend the Cremation Acts in their application to Scotland. The Certification of Death (Scotland) Act 2011 introduced a new system of death registration in Scotland. Section 7 of the Cremation Act 1902 required the Secretary of State for Scotland to make regulations prescribing, amongst other things, the forms of the prescribing the forms of the notices, certificates, and applications to be given or made before any cremations could take place. Section 30 and Schedule 2(1) and 2(2) of the 2011 Act transferred these powers to the Scottish Ministers. It also made such regulations subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of the Scottish Ministers.

Section 8 of the Cremation Act 1902 prescribed penalties for carrying out cremations in breach of the regulations made under section 7. Seciton 30 and Schedule 1(4) of the 2011 Act removed from the ambit of section 8 the offence of disposing of a body without authorisation under section 27A(1) of the Registration of Births, Deaths and Marriages (Scotland) Act 1965.

THE REGULATIONS

Cremation Regulations, 1915, S.R. &O. 1915 (No. 376), v I, p 86 (16/9/14 - came into force 10/12/14)

Cremation Regulations, 1903, reg. 12(6) required the medical referee of a crematorium not to allow a cremation to proceed at the crematorium if he was aware of any suspicious circumstances surrounding the death of the person to be cremated unless an inquest had been held and a coroner had issued a certificate in form E. Regulation 1 of Cremation Regulations, 1915, empowered the Secretary of State to authorize a cremation to proceed in such circumstances even though an inquest had not been held.

Cremation Regulations, 1903, reg. 12 allowed a medical referee to permit the cremation of a person who had died out of England to proceed even though forms A, B, C, D had not been completed by persons having the exact qualifications required by the Regulations, so long as the signatories' qualifications were substantially equivalent to those required. Regulation 2 of Cremation Regulations, 1915, empowered the Secretary of State to authorize a cremation to proceed in such a case in the absence of a certificate of registry of death.

Question 9 in form B of the Cremation Regulations, 1903, asked about the primary and secondary causes of death. Regulation 3 of Cremation Regulations, 1915, added a question 9A which asked whether other causes of death existed.

Cremation Regulations, 1903, required doctors signing certificates in forms B and C to certify, among other things, that they knew of no circumstance "which makes it desirable that the body should not be cremated". Regulation 4 of Cremation Regulations, 1915, altered these words to "there is no circumstance known to me which makes it undesirable that the body should be cremated".

Cremation Regulations, 1920, S.R. &O. 1920 (No. 1286), v I, p 434 (26/4/20 - came into force 5/6/20)

The Cremation Regulations, 1920, repealed the existing regulations but replaced them with very few changes.

References to the Local Government Board were replaced with references to the Ministry of Health

The words "Except as hereafter mentioned" were added at the beginning of regulation 8 which set out the certificates that had to be completed before a cremation could be allowed to take place.

Regulation 12 of the 1903 Regulations modified the strict requirements relating to the production of forms A, B, C, and D in the case of person who had died abroad. Regulation 2 of the 1915 Regulations added a further modification in such a case which permitted the Home Secretary to authorise a medical referee to allow a cremation even though no Certificate of Registry of Death was produced.

The 1920 Regulations also permitted the Home Secretary to give such an authorisation even without the production of form B or form C, but added that he could give an authorisation only if satisfied that the case was one in which a cremation could properly take place.

Cremation Regulations, 1925, S.R. &O. 1925 (No. 761), p 209 (23/6/25 - came into force 3/8/25)

Regulation 18 of the 1920 Regulations required all applications, certificates, statutory declarations and other documents relating to any cremation to be preserved. The 1925 Regulation allowed a Cremation Authority to destroy these documents (but not the registers in which were recorded the particulars the documents contained) after fifteen years from the cremation to which they related.

Cremation Regulations, 1927, S.R. &O. 1927 (No. 575), p 317 (6/5/27 - came into force 19/2/27)

Regulation 6 of the 1920 Regulations, as amended, prohibited a cremation from taking place until either the death of to be cremated had been properly registered or a coroner had held an inquest into the death and issued a certificate in Form E. Regulation 2 of the 1927 Regulations added a further circumstance in which a cremation could take place, namely where a certificate had been given, in accordance with the Births and Deaths Registration Act, 1926, s. 2(2), that the death was not required to be registered in England.

Regulation 12 of the 1920 Regulations, as amended, set out the duties of Medical Referees. Paragraph 2 of Regulation 12 prohibited a medical referee from allowing a cremation to take place unless either a coroner had held an inquest into the death of the person to be cremated and issued a certificate in Form E or the referee was satisfied, by production of the appropriate certificate of registry of death, that the death had been properly registered. Regulation 3 replaced paragraph 2 with a new paragraph, drafted to incorporate references to the appropriate subsections of section 2 of the Births and Deaths Registration Act of 1926 (which had been passed since the last amendment of the Cremation Regulations in 1925) and extended the circumstances in which a referee could allow a cremation to proceed to include that where a certificate had been given in accordance with the Births and Deaths Registration Act, 1926, s. 2(2) that the death was not required to be registered in England. The new paragraph also allowed the referee to treat a properly issued duplicate certificate from a registrar as if it were an original certificate.

The final paragraph of Regulation 12 of the 1920 Regulations, as amended, allowed the Home Secretary to authorise the medical referee of permit the cremation of a person who had died abroad without the production of a certificate of registry of death or of Forms B and C. Regulation 3 of the 1927 Regulations removed the reference to the certificate of registry of death from the regulation.

Regulation 15 of the 1920 Regulations, as amended, dispensed with the many of the requirements of the Regulations in the case of the cremation of a still-born child, so long as the medical referee was satisfied by a certificate from a doctor that the child had been still-born and so long as the medical referee was satisfied that no further inquiries into the birth were necessary. Regulation 4 of the 1927 Regulations prevented the referee from permitting the cremation unless either an inquest had been held and the coroner had issued his certificate in form E or a certificate of the registry of a still-birth in accordance with Births and Deaths Registration Act, 1926, s. 7(4) (the first statutory requirement of the registration of still-births) had been produced.

Regulation 5 of the 1927 Regulations added a detachable "Notification of Cremation" to Coroner's Form E.

Cremation Regulations (Scotland) 1927, S.R. &O. 1928 (No 41)(S. 5) p 417 (27/8/27 - came into force 18/12/27)

Section 7 of the The Cremation Act of 1902 required "The Secretary of State" to make regulations relating to various aspects of cremation. Section 3 of the Act provided that in the application of the Act to Scotland "the expression 'Secretary of State' shall mean the Secretary for Scotland".No regulations under section 7 were even made by the Secretary for Scotland before the office of Secretary for Scotland was replaced by that of Secretary of State for Scotland by the Secretaries of State Act, 1926, and the powers of the Secretary for Scotland passed to the Secretary of State for Scotland. The Regulations made in 1927 were the first applicable to Scotland.

S.R. &O. 1928 (No. 959)(S. 51) (4/12/28 - came into force 1/1/29)

Cremation Regulations, 1930, S.R. &O. 1930 (No. 1016), p 417 (28/10/30 - came into force 9/12/30)

Coroners (Amendment) Act, 1926, s. 21 had permitted a coroner, in certain circumstances, to order a post-mortem examination with a view to avoiding the necessity of holding an inquest on a dead body. Regulation 6 of the 1920 Regulations, as amended, prohibited a cremation from taking place until either the death of the person to be cremated had been properly registered, or a certificate had been given that the death was not required to be registered in England, or a coroner had held an inquest into the death and issued a certificate in Form E. Regulation 6 of the 1930 Regulations provided that a cremation could be allowed to proceed, in addition, where a coroner had issued a certificate in Form E after a post-mortem examination ordered by the coroner under Coroners (Amendment) Act, 1926, s. 21(1).

Regulation 6 of the 1930 Regulations also allowed a properly issued duplicate certificate from a registrar to be accepted as if it were an original certificate.

Regulation 8 of the 1920 Regulations, as amended, prohibited a cremation taking place except in certain conditions, numbered (a), (b) and (c). 8(a) was that a properly completed certificate in Form B "be given". Regulation 8(a) of the 1930 Regulations altered this to "has been given".

Coroners (Amendment) Act, 1926, had permitted a coroner, in certain circumstances, to order a post-mortem examination with a view to avoiding the necessity of holding an inquest on a dead body. Regulation 8(c) of the 1930 Regulations (a new provision) provided that one of the situations in which a cremation could be allowed to proceed was that a post-mortem examination had been made and the cause of death certified under Coroners (Amendment) Act, 1926, and the coroner had given a certificate in Form E.

Regulation 8(c) of the 1920 Regulations allowed a cremation to take place if an inquest had been held and a certificate in Form E been given. This became regulation 8(d) of the 1930 Regulations, which provided, in addition, that where a coroner adjourned an inquest into a death which had occurred in connection with certain types of accident with a view to the investigation of the causes of the accident, the coroner could issue a certificate in Form E without waiting for the termination of the inquest so long as he was satisfied that the death was due to the accident.

Regulation 9 of the 1920 Regulations, as amended, had provided that the certificate in Form C, if not given by a medical referee, had to be given by a doctor of five years standing who, in addition, either had been appointed for the purpose by a Cremation Authority or held one of certain public medical positions. Regulation 9 of the 1930 Regulations dispensed with the necessity of these further qualifications.

Regulation 10 of the 1920 Regulations, as amended, required every Cremation Authority to appoint a Medical Referee and Deputy Medical Referee and to report the name, address and qualifications of those appointed to the Home Secretary. Regulation 10 of the 1930 Regulations required every Cremation Authority to have a Referee and Deputy Referee and to nominate person for such appointments, but gave the power of appointment from those nominated to the Home Secretary.

Regulation 10 also allowed a Medical Referee or Deputy Medical Referee appointed by the Secretary of State to act in an emergency as the Referee of a Cremation Authority other than that for which he or she was appointed.

Regulation 12 of the 1920 Regulations, as amended, set out the duties of Medical Referees. Paragraph 2 of Regulation 12 prohibited a medical referee from allowing a cremation to take place unless either a coroner had held an inquest into the death of the person to be cremated and issued a certificate in Form E or the referee was satisfied, by production of the appropriate certificate of registry of death, that the death had been properly registered or that a certificate the death was not required to be registered in England. Coroners (Amendment) Act, 1926, had permitted a coroner, in certain circumstances, to order a post-mortem examination with a view to avoiding the necessity of holding an inquest on a dead body. Regulation 12(2) permitted a Medical Referee to allow a cremation to proceed, in addition, where a coroner had issued a certificate in Form E after ordering an inquest under Coroners (Amendment) Act, 1926, s. 21.

Regulation 12(9) inserted a requirement into the duties of a Medical Referee of making reports, as from time to time required, to the Home Secretary.

Regulation 15 of the 1920 Regulations, as amended, set out the circumstances in which the cremation of a still-born child could take place. Regulation 15 of the 1930 Regulations provided, in addition, that properly issued duplicates of the certificates required could be accepted as if they were original certificates.

Regulation 16 of the 1920 Regulations, as amended, provided that, in the absence of any special arrangement for the disposal of the ashes of a deceased retained, after cremation, by a Cremation Authority, the ashes were to be buried either in a burial ground or in land adjoining the crematorium reserved for the burial of ashes. Regulation 16 of the 1930 Regulations allowed the ashes also to be scatted on the ground or land.

Regulation 6 of the 1927 Regulations required the Registrar of a Cremation Authority to notify the registrar of deaths, within ninety-six hours, of the carrying out of a cremation by his or her Authority. This regulation was reenacted in regulation 19 of the 1930 Regulations and a reference to a post-mortem examination carried out under Coroners (Amendment) Act, 1926, s. 21 was included in regulation 19(1)(c).

Regulation 20 of the 1920 Regulations, as amended, empowered the Secretary of State to make any inquiry he or she thought fit into the carrying out of the Regulations in connection with any crematorium. This was not reenacted, as such, in the 1930 Regulations but, as stated above, regulation 12(9) obliged a Medical Referee to provide such reports as the Secretary of State might require.

Question 9 (and 9A) of Form B of the 1920 Regulations, as amended, which related to the cause of death of the deceased, was reformulated in the 1930 Regulations.

Question 16 of Form B of the 1920 Regulations, as amended, asked if the doctor knew or had any reason to suspect that death of the deceased was due to violence, poison, or privation or neglect. Question 16 of Form B of the 1930 Regulations asked only if the doctor had any reason to suspect this.

The declaration which a doctor providing Form B in the 1920 Regulations, as amended, made included that "there is no circumstance known to me which can give rise to any suspicion that the death was due wholly or in part to any other cause than disease/accident and that there is no circumstance of any sort known to me which makes it undesirable the body should be cremated". The analogous words in Form B of the 1930 Regulations were that "I know of no reasonable cause to suspect that the deceased died either a violent or an unnatural death or a sudden death of which the cause is unknown or died in such place or circumstances as to require an inquest in pursuance of any Act."

The introductory words to Form C of the 1920 Regulations, as amended, required the doctor providing the certificate to state that he had examined the certificate given in Form B and had made personal inquiry as stated in his answers to the questions in Form C. The introductory words in From C of the 1930 Regulations required the doctor to state also that he was neither a relative of the deceased nor a partner of the doctor who had provided the certificate in Form B.

Form E of the 1920 Regulations, as amended, required a coroner to certify, among other things, that he had held an inquest and to report the finding of the jury. Form E of the 1930 Regulations allowed the coroner also to certify that he had held an inquest which he had adjourned pending an investigation into the causes of the accident which caused the death and that he had ordered a post-mortem examination under Coroners (Amendment) Act, 1926, s. 21. It also allowed him to state his conclusion and the cause of death as disclosed by the report of the post-mortem examination.

S.R. &O. 1935 (No 247) (S. 9)) (came into force 31/1/35)

Defence (General) Regulations (Amendment) Regulation, 1940, S.R. &O., 1940 (No. 1134), v. 2, p. 76 (came into force - 2/7/40)

Defence (General) Regulations, 1939 (No. 927) (S.R. &O., 1939, v. 1, p. 715), r. 30 - as reenacted by Defence (General) Regulations (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations, 1939 (No. 1681) (S.R. &O., 1949, v. 1, p. 811) r. 8 - limited the circumstances in which, in England and Wales, a coroner's inquest or, in Scotland, a fatal accident inquiry, had to held in respect of deaths due to war operations. It also modified the requirements of death registration in such cases and extended the powers of local authorities to bury the bodies of persons whose deaths were due to war operations. Defence (General) Regulations (Amendment) Regulation, 1940, r. 6, by restricting the application of regulations 8, 12(3), 12(5) and 12(6) of the Cremation Regulations, 1930, and of regulations 6, 8, 12(d) and the final paragraph of regulation 12 of the Cremation (Scotland) Regulations, 1935, dispensed with the need for any further certificates for the cremations of persons whose deaths were certified to be due to war operations except the written authority of the medical referee of a crematorium for the cremations to proceed. Regulation 30 was removed from the Defence (General) Regulations and reenacted by Defence (Burial, Inquests and Registration of Deaths) Regulations, 1942 (No. 1444) (S.R. &O., 1942, v. 2, p. 119)

These modifications of the Cremation Regulations ceased to have effect on 24 February 1946.

Cremation Regulations, 1952, S.I. 1952 (No. 1568), v. 1, p 661 (23/8/52 - came into force 26/9/52)

Cremation Act, 1902, s. 7 required the Secretary of State to make regulations prescribing, among other things, the declarations that had to be made before a cremation could take place and requiring such declarations to made be made in accordance with the Statutory Declarations Act, 1835. Cremation Regulations, 1930, r. 7 provided that no cremation could take place unless an application for the cremation had been made in a prescribed form (Form A) and the particulars in the application had been confirmed by a statutory declaration; and Form A specifically referred to the 1835 Act. Cremation Act, 1952, s. 2 substituted for the requirement that declarations be made in accordance with the 1835 Act a requirement that applications should be verified as prescribed by the Secretary of State in regulations. Regulation 1 of the Cremation Regulations, 1952, accordingly replaced regulation 7 of the 1930 Regulations with a new regulation, setting out, among other things, the classes of persons who could countersign an application for cremation. It also replaced Form A with a new form.

Regulation 12 of the 1930 Regulations modified the strict requirements relating to the production of Forms A, B, C, and D in the case of persons who had died abroad. Regulation 2 of the 1952 Regulations modified Regulation 12 by by requiring an application for the cremation of someone who had died in Scotland to be either in the form prescribed by the English Regulations or by the Scottish ones.

Regulation 20 of the 1930 Regulations referred to statutory declarations. Regulation 3 of the 1952 Regulations removed these references from regulation 20.

Cremation (Scotland) Regulations, 1952, S.I. 1952 (No. 1639 (S. 84)), v. 1, p 664 (4/9/52 - came into force 26/9/52)

Cremation Act, 1902, s. 7 required the Secretary of State to make regulations prescribing, among other things, the declarations that had to be made before a cremation could take place and requiring such declarations to made be made in accordance with the Statutory Declarations Act, 1835. Cremation (Scotland) Regulations, 1935, r. 7 provided that no cremation could take place unless an application for the cremation had been made in a prescribed form (Form A) and the particulars in the application had been confirmed by a statutory declaration; and Form A specifically referred to the 1835 Act. Cremation Act, 1952, s. 2 substituted for the requirement that declarations be made in accordance with the 1835 Act a requirement that applications should be verified as prescribed by the Secretary of State in regulations. Regulation 2 of the Cremation (Scotland) Regulations, 1952, accordingly replaced regulation 7 of the 1935 Regulations with a new regulation, setting out, among other things, the classes of persons who could countersign an application for cremation. Regulation 3 of the 1952 Regulations also replaced Form A with a new form.

Regulation 13 of the 1935 Regulations modified the strict requirements relating to the production of Forms A, B, C, and D in the case of persons who had died elsewhere than in Scotland. Regulation 4 of the 1952 Regulations modified Regulation 13 by requiring an application for the cremation of someone who had died in England to be either in the form prescribed by the Scottish Regulations or by the English ones.

Regulation 19 of the 1935 Regulations referred to statutory declarations. Regulation 5 of the 1952 Regulations removed these references from regulation 19.

Order under Regulation 14 of the Cremation Regulations, 1930, 1962 (Rhonnda) (came into force 7/3/62)

As the result of a death from smallpox in the Rhonnda, this Order dispensed with the necessity of the usual certificates before a cremation and permitted a Medical Referee to allow the cremation of a person who had died from smallpox in the Rhonnda if the Medical Officer of Health for the Rhonnda certified that the person had died from smallpox. The Order remained in force for two months.

Order under Regulation 14 of the Cremation Regulations, 1930, 1962 (Penybont) (came into force 12/3/62)

As the result of a death from smallpox in Penybont, this Order dispensed with the necessity of the usual certificates before a cremation and permitted a Medical Referee to allow the cremation of a person who had died from smallpox in Penybont if the Medical Officer of Health for Penybont certified that the person had died from smallpox. The Order remained in force for seven weeks.

Order under Regulation 14 of the Cremation Regulations, 1930, 1962 (Ogmore and Garw) (came into force 9/4/62)

As the result of a death from smallpox in Ogmore and Garw, this Order dispensed with the necessity of the usual certificates before a cremation and permitted a Medical Referee to allow the cremation of a person who had died from smallpox in Penybont if the Medical Officer of Health for Ogmore and Garw certified that the person had died from smallpox. The Order remained in force for two months.

Cremation Regulations, 1965, S.I. 1965 (No. 1146), p 3219 (15/5/65 - came into force 6/6/65)

Regulation 4 of the Cremation Regulations, 1930, as amended, prohibited the cremation of anyone who had left written instructions that his or her body was not to be cremated, regulation 12(1) required a medical referee not to allow a cremation to take place it if appeared that the deceased had left such an instruction, and the application for cremation in form A included an inquiry whether the deceased had left such an instruction. Regulation 7(a), (d) and (e) of the 1965 Regulations revoked these regulations.

Regulation 5 of the Cremation Regulations, 1930, as amended, prohibited the cremation of unidentified human remains. Regulation 7(b) revoked this regulation.

Cremation Regulations 1930 allowed a coroner, in limited circumstances, to issue a certificate in form E without waiting until the completion of an inquest he had opened. Regulations 1 and 7(c) amended regulations 6, 8(d), 12(2), 12(5), 12(7) and 15 of the 1930 Cremation Regulations, as amended, by removing the limitations; and regulation 5 provided a new form E.

Regulation 7(3) of the 1930 Cremation Regulations, as amended, set out the classes of persons by whom an application for cremation had to be countersigned. Regulation 2 of the 1965 Regulations replaced all these classes by a householder to whom the applicant was known.

By Anatomy Act, 1832, s. 13 a body donated under the Act for anatomical examination had to be buried after the examination. Human Tissue Act, 1961, s. 3 allowed it to be cremated. Regulation 3 of the 1965 Cremation Regulations allowed the cremation of a body after anatomical examination so long as a certificate in a new Form H was forthcoming from a person licensed under Anatomy Act, 1832, s. 1 and regulation 6 of the 1965 Regulations provided for the terms of Form H.

Regulation 20 of the 1930 Cremation Regulations, as amended, required all applications, certificates and other documents relating to a cremation to retained for at least fifteen years after the cremation to which they related. Regulation 4 of the 1965 Regulations allowed them to be destroyed after two years if a photographic copy of them was made and required the copy to be retained for fifteen years from the cremation.

Cremation (Scotland) Amendment Regulations, 1967, S.I. 1967 (No. 398 (S. 31)) v. , p 1332 (7/3/67 - came into force 1/5/67

The Registration of Births, Deaths and Marriages (Scotland) Act, 1854 prescribed the need for and particulars of certificates of registration of deaths. The 1854 Act was replaced by the Registration of Births, Deaths and Marriages (Scotland) Act, 1965 and regulations made under the new Act prescribed the form of these certificates and of those for the registration of still-births. Regulation 2, 6 and 7 of the Cremation (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 1967 made the necessary consequential alterations to regulations 6(a), 15 and 16 of the Cremation (Scotland) Regulations, 1935, as amended.

Where an application was made to cremate a person in Scotland who had died in England, regulation 6(c)(ii) of the 1935 Regulations permitted the cremation if a certificate had been provided by a coroner in the required form (Form E(2)), and regulations 8(d) and (e) also contained requirements relating to Form E(2). Regulation 11(c) and (d) of the 1967 Amendment Regulations revoked regulations 8(d) and (e) of the 1935 Regulations and regulation 3 of the 1967 Regulations amended regulation 6(c)(ii) of the 1935 Regulations by dispensing with form E(2) in favour of the equivalent form as prescribed by the English Cremation Regulations.

Regulation 7(3) of the 1935 Regulations, as amended, set out the classes of persons by whom an application for cremation had to be countersigned. Regulation 4 of the 1967 Amendment Regulations replaced all these classes by a householder to whom the applicant was known.

By Anatomy Act, 1832, s. 13 a body donated under the Act for anatomical examination had to be buried after the examination. Human Tissue Act, 1961, s. 3 allowed it to be cremated. Regulation 5 of 1967 Amendment Regulations 1967 allowed the cremation of a body after anatomical examination so long as a certificate in a new Form H was forthcoming from a person licensed under Anatomy Act, 1832, s. 1, and regulation 10 of the 1967 Amendment Regulations provided for the terms of Form H.

When the ashes from a cremation were neither returned to the applicant for the cremation or disposed of in accordance with an arrangement made with the applicant, regulation 17 of the 1935 Regulations, as amended, required a cremation authority to inter them in a burial ground or in land adjoining the crematorium reserved for the burial of ashes. Regulation 8 of the 1967 Amendment Regulations amended regulation 17 to allow the ashes to be scattered instead of interred.

Regulation 19 of the 1935 Regulations, as amended, required all applications, certificates and other documents relating to a cremation to retained for at least fifteen years after the cremation to which they related. Regulation 9 of the 1967 Amendment Regulations allowed them to be destroyed after two years if a photographic copy of them was made and required the copy to be retained for fifteen years from the cremation.

Regulation 4 of the 1935 Regulations, as amended, prohibited the cremation of anyone who had left written instructions that his or her body was not to be cremated, regulation 12(a) required a medical referee not to allow a cremation to take place it if appeared that the deceased had left such an instruction, and the application for cremation in Form A included an inquiry whether the deceased had left such an instruction. Regulation 11(a) and (e) of the 1967 Amendment Regulations 1967 revoked these regulations.

Regulation 5 and 12(b) of the 1935 Regulations, as amended, prohibited the cremation of unidentified human remains. Regulation 11(b) of the 1967 Amendment Regulations revoked these regulations.

Cremation Regulations, 1979, S.I. 1979 (No. 1138), p 2902 (6/9/79 - came into force 1/11/79)

The final two paragraphs of regulation 12 of the Cremation Regulations 1930, as amended, set out modifications to the documents which had to be provided to a medical referee before a cremation could take place, when the person to be cremated had died elsewhere than in England and Wales. Regulations 3 and 4 of the 1979 Regulations revoked these two paragraphs and inserted a new regulation, 12A, into the 1930 Regulations to deal with the cremation of persons who had died (a) in Scotland, (b) in the British Isles, and (c) elsewhere.

Cremation Regulations, 1930, r. 12 set out the medical certificate that needed to be produced to a medical referee before the cremation of a still-born child could take place. Regulation 6 of the 1979 Regulations disapplied this in the case of the cremation of a child still-born outside England and Wales and inserted a new regulation, 15A, into the 1930 Regulations for such a case.

Cremation Regulations, 1985, S.I. 1985 (No. 153), p 333 (9/2/85 - came into force 1/4/85)

Regulation 8 of the Cremation Regulations, 1930, as amended, permit a medical referee to allow a cremation where, among other things, certificates in forms B and C were forthcoming. Cremation (Amendment) Regulations, 1985, r. 3 inserted a new regulation, 8A, into the 1930 Regulations to allow a cremation to take place without a certificate in form C being produced if the deceased died in a hospital at which he was an in-patient and was subjected to a post-mortem examination by a medical practitioner of at least five years standing who was neither a relative of the deceased nor relative or partner of the the practitioner giving the certificate in form B and that practitioner knows the result of the examination. Regulation 5 of the 1985 Regulations inserted a new question, 8A, into form B to ascertain whether those conditions obtained.

Regulations 12(6) and 12A(2) of the Cremation Regulations, 1930, as amended, allowed the Secretary of State, in certain circumstances, by "order under his hand" to authorise a medical referee to permit a cremation without some of the usual requirements being observed. Regulation 4 of the 1985 Regulations removed the necessity for the order to be under the Secretary of State's hand.

S.I. 1985/820 (S. 73) v , p 2152 (22/5/85 - came into force 1/8/85)

Cremation (Scotland) Amendment Regulations, 1985, S.I. 1985 (No. 820 (S. 73)), v. , p 2152 (22/5/85 - came into force 1/8/85)

Regulation 8 of the Cremation (Scotland) Regulations, 1935, as amended, permit a medical referee to allow a cremation where, among other things, certificates in forms B and C were forthcoming. Regulation 8(a) required form C to be given by a medical practitioner of not less than five years' standing. Regulation 2 of the Cremation (Scotland) Amendment Regulations of 1985 amended regulation 8(a) by requiring, in addition, that that practitioner be registered; and regulation 5 of the 1985 Amendment Regulations altered the statement which begins form C accordingly.

Regulation 8 of the 1935 Regulations, 1935, as amended, permit a medical referee to allow a cremation where, among other things, certificates in forms B and C were forthcoming. The 1985 Amendment Regulations, 1985, r. 3 inserted a new regulation, 8A, into the 1935 Regulations to allow a cremation to take place without a certificate in form C being produced if the deceased died in a hospital at which he was an in-patient and was subjected to a post-mortem examination by a medical practitioner of at least five years standing who was neither a relative of the deceased and nor a relative or partner of the practitioner giving the certificate in form B and that practitioner knows the result of the examination. Regulation 4 of the 1985 Regulations inserted a new question, 8A, into form B to ascertain whether those conditions obtained.

Anatomy Act, 1984 (c. 14)(came into force 14 February 1988), in conjunction with Interpretation Act, 1978 (c. 30), ss. 17(2) and 23(1)

The Anatomy Act, 1984, replaced the Anatomy Act, 1832. As a consequence of Interpretation Act, 1978, ss. 17(2) and 23(1) references to the Anatomy Act, 1832, in the Cremation Regulations had to be replaced by references to the Anatomy Act, 1984.

Cremation Regulations, 2000, S.I. 2000 (No. 58) (13/1/2000 - came into force 14/2/2000)

The Cremation Regulations, 1930, made no express provision for separate cremations, at different times, of different parts from the same body. Cremation (Amendment) Regulations, 2000, amended the 1930 Regulations by making such provision for the cremation of parts removed from a dead body during a post-mortem examination. Cremation (Amendment) Regulations, 2000, r. 3 added to the Definitions contained in Cremation Regulations, 1930, a definition of "body parts". Regulation 5 inserted into the 1930 Regulations a new r. 14A setting out the conditions with which cremations of body parts have to comply. Rr 7, 8, 9 inserted into the Schedule to the 1930 Regulations three new forms (AA, DD and FF) for use in connection with the cremation of body parts, and rr. 4 amended Cremation Regulations, 1930, r. 7 to make appropriate reference to these.

Cremation (Amendment) Regulations, 2000, r. 10 inserted into the Schedule to Cremation Regulations, 1930, a new form (GG) for keeping a register of cremation of body parts, and r. 6 amended Cremation Regulations, 1930, r. 17 by making appropriate reference to this.

Cremation (Scotland) Amendment Regulations, 2003, S.S.I. 2003 (No. 301) (5/6/2003 - came into force 27/6/2003)

The Scotland (Cremation) Regulations, 1935, made no express provision for separate cremations, at different times, of different parts from the same body. Cremation (Scotland) Amendment Regulations, 2003, amended the 1935 Regulations by making such provision for the cremation of parts removed from a dead body during a post-mortem examination. Cremation (Scotland) Amendment Regulations, 2003, r. 2(1) added to the Definitions contained in the Scotland (Cremation) Regulations, 1935, a definition of "body parts". Regulation 2(3) inserted into the 1930 Regulations a new r. 15A setting out the conditions with which cremations of body parts have to comply. Rr, 2(5), 2(6), and 2(7) inserted into the Schedule to the 1935 Regulations three new forms (AA, DD and FF) for use in connection with the cremation of body parts, and r. 2(2) amended Scotland (Cremation) Regulations, 1935, rr. 7(2) to make appropriate reference to Form AA.

Cremation (Scotland) Amendment Regulations, 2003, r. 2(8) inserted into the Schedule to Scotland (Cremation) Regulations, 1935, a new form (GG) for keeping a register of cremation of body parts, and r. 2(4) amended Cremation Regulations, 1930, r. 18 by making appropriate reference to this.

Cremation (Amendment) Regulations, 2006, S.I. 2006 (No. 92) (18/1/2006 - came into force 14/2/2006)

Regulations 6, 12, and 15 of the Cremation Regulations 1930, as amended, all refer to sections of the Births and Deaths Registration Act 1926. These sections were all been repealed by the Births and Deaths Registration Act 1953 and replaced by similar sections. Regulations 6, 7(2) and 11(b) and (c) of the Cremation (Amendment) Regulations 2006 replaced references in the 1930 Regulations to the sections of the 1926 Act with references to their cognate sections in the 1953 Act and regulation 4(d) of the 2006 Regulations removed the reference to the 1926 Act from the Definitions in the 1930 Regulations.

Where a person had died outside the British Islands and no forms B and C were forthcoming, regulation 12A(1)(d) and 12A(2) of the Cremation Regulations 1930, as amended, permitted a medical referee to allow a cremation if either certificates to the like effect and of like authority were forthcoming or the Secretary of State authorised the referee to allow the cremation nevertheless. Regulations 6, 8 and 13(5) of the Cremation (Amendment) Regulations 2006 amended regulations 8, 12A and Form E of the 1930 Regulations to permit a medical referee to allow a cremation to take place in such a case also if a coroner certified on Form E that the deceased had died from natural causes and no inquest or post-mortem was necessary.

Regulation 12(8) of the Cremation Regulations 1930, as amended, authorised a medical referee to refuse to allow a cremation without giving any reasons. Regulation 7(3) of the Cremation (Amendment) Regulations 2006 amended regulation 12(8) to require a referee to give reasons when refusing to allow a cremation.

Regulation 15 of the Cremation Regulations 1930, as amended, permitted a medical referee to allow the cremation of the remains of a still-born child if, among other things, a registered medical practitioner certified, after examining the body of the child, that it was still born. Regulation 11 of the Cremation (Amendment) Regulations 2006 amended regulation 15 to permit certification by a registered midwife as well. Regulation 15A made analogous provision in respect of a child stillborn outside England and Wales and regulation 12 of the 2006 Regulations made a analogous amendment to regulation 15A.

An applicant for a cremation was required to indicate on Forms A and AA whether the deceased was "married, a widow or widower, or unmarried". To accommodate changes in the law effected by the Civil Partnerships Act 2004, regulation 13(2) of the Cremation (Amendment) Regulations 2006 added to this list in Form A "civil partner", " surviving civil partner", and "(not) in a civil partnership" and regulation 13(3)(a) made an identical amendment to form AA.

Question 4 on Forms A and AA required an applicant for cremation to indicate whether the near relatives of the deceased had been informed of the proposed cremation and the term "near relative" was said to include "widow or widower, parents, children above the age of 16, and any other relative usually residing with the deceased". Regulation 13(3)(c) of the Cremation (Amendment) Regulations 2006 added to this list "surviving civil partner". No similar addition was made to the list in Form A.

Cremation Registers required by to be kept as in Form G of the Cremation Regulations 1930, as amended, had a column to indicate whether the deceased was "married or unmarried". Regulation 13(6) of the Cremation (Amendment) Regulations 2006 altered this to "married, a civil partner, neither married nor a civil partner".

The Cremation Regulations 1930, as amended, made different, but similar, provisions for the cremation of bodies, on the one hand, and body parts, on the other. Regulation 14A governed the cremation of body parts, which were defined in a separate regulation as "organs or tissue removed from a deceased person during the course of a post-mortem examination". Regulation 4(a) of the Cremation (Amendment) Regulations 2006 altered this definition in three respects. First, the definition was extended to encompass not just organs or tissue but material including or consisting of human cells; secondly, while the parts still had to come from a person who was dead at the time of the application for cremation of the parts, they no longer had to have been removed while the person was dead; and thirdly, they could also come from a stillborn child.

As a consequence of the second of these changes regulation 13(3)(b) and 13(4) of the 2006 Regulations removed the references to post-mortem examinations from Forms AA and DD respectively, replacing the reference in Form DD with a reference to body parts.

As a consequence of the third, regulations 9(1)(b) and (c) and 9(4) the 2006 Regulations amended regulation 14A of the 1930 Regulations, by inserting in it appropriate references to stillborn children and the registration of stillbirths. Regulation 9(2) and (3) of the 2006 Regulations also made cosmetic changes to the drafting of regulations 14A(1) and 14A(2) of the 1930 Regulations.

The Cremation Regulations 1930, as amended, contained no provisions relating to the incineration, as opposed to the cremation, of body parts. Regulation 4(b) of the Cremation (Amendment) Regulations 2006 adds to the Definitions in the 1930 Regulations a definition of "incineration", "Lists of Wastes Regulations" and "permit" and regulation 10 of the 2006 Regulations inserts into the 1930 Regulations a regulation 14B authorising the incineration of body parts which are not cremated in accordance with regulation 14A.

Cremation (England and Wales) Regulations, 2008, S.I. 2008 (No. 2841) (22/10/2008 - came into force 1/1/2009)

The Cremation (England and Wales) Regulations, 2008, replaced the Cremation Regulations, 1930, as amended. A summary of the changes made by them is given in the Explanatory Note which accompanied their introduction into Parliament.

FUTURE AMENDMENTS TO THE ACTS AND REGULATIONS RELATING TO CREMATION CAN BE FOUND BY REFERRING TO THE LIST OF ACTS AND REGULATIONS AND THE EXPLANATORY NOTES THAT ACCOMPANY EACH ACT/REGULATION ON THE LEGISLATION.GOV.UK WEBSITE.

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The Cremation Society of Great Britain accepts no responsibility for the accuracy of the texts of Acts and Regulations on this Website or for this summary of the effects of amendments.