New Mortuary and Coroner’s Court completed

Bereaved families in East London will benefit from a £8.3m investment in a new bespoke mortuary and a refurbished Coroner’s Court to help them through some of their hardest moments.

On Monday 8 July, Waltham Forest Council, the East London Coroner’s Court, and faith group leaders gathered to mark the official opening of the new buildings. 

The new mortuary facility, built by Elite Systems GB for Waltham Forest Council and a partnership of four other East London boroughs, incorporates up-to-date technology into the mortuary process so that postmortems can be carried out non-intrusively, an important consideration for several faith communities. 

The purpose-built East London Forensic Centre will be the first in London to be run by a council. 

The new tools include a Postmortem Computed Tomography (PMCT) scanner, a non-invasive scanning technology for physical and digital postmortem examinations, a first in London and the South-East of England, and an advancement welcomed by faith groups and families alike. 

The facility is the only purpose-built facility south of the Midlands that offers non invasive post mortem examinations in line with modern standards. 

The new Mortuary will primarily provide services for Waltham Forest, Redbridge, Havering, Newham and Barking and Dagenham residents although it will also be open to other jurisdictions.  It has an increased capacity as well as improved facilities, including separate entrances for staff and visitors, better parking with disabled parking spaces and cycle storage, and enhancements to public spaces for quiet and reflection with soft greenery.

The new adjacent Coroner’s Court building has seen upgrades too, increasing the capacity of the existing building to provide an additional court and offices, and the introduction of new technology to digitise the court, allowing for inquests to be heard remotely as well as in person – an improvement appreciated by family members who cannot travel to inquests. This much-needed investment will provide enhanced capacity to meet service demand in an enhanced, modernised, and accessible setting. 

Councillor Ahsan Khan, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Housing and Regeneration said: “We are proud to have built and delivered two new state-of-the-art buildings and innovative facilities that will transform how we support Waltham Forest residents, and the wider East London coronial jurisdiction, both practically and emotionally when losing a loved one. I’d like to thank everyone involved in the project for building and creating these spaces that will give families the support they need for years to come.”

Faith group leaders representing the Jewish and Muslim communities also welcomed the new facilities. 

Board Member of External Affairs at the Gardens of Peace Muslim Cemetery and Chair of the National Burial Council, Mohamed Omer said: “The new facilities are game-changing for both the Muslim and Jewish communities. Previously we had to travel all the way to Oxford, which was the nearest scanning facility so having this right on our doorstep for the whole of East London will improve the support we can give to families going through bereavement. We have been asking for non-invasive scanning postmortem technology for years, and we have been listened to and heard by the Council. I’d like to thank Waltham Forest Council for all their work to make this happen.”

Jewish faith group leader Mr Sinitsky said: “Non-invasive postmortem scanning has been around for about 20 years and during that time I have arranged over 1,500 scans for the Jewish community and for the bulk of them, we had to travel to Oxford which is quite a long way. I have been at the forefront of arranging postmortem scans for many years and now it is a straightforward process. Thank you to the Council and to everyone involved in the project to bring these much-needed facilities to East London.”