The Borders first crematorium will begin operations by the end of this year.  The crematorium will be located next to Wairds cemetery just outside Melrose and in the shadow of the Eildon Hills.  A picture perfect postcard location.

The good news does not end there.  Work has started work on a second crematorium at Houndwood Church in Berwickshire.

The facility at Wairds will be run by Westerleigh, the UK’s second largest crematorium operator, and costs approximately £2.6 million.  The building will contain an 84 seat chapel with standing room for 100 outside.   The expected annual number of cremations is 500.  It is estimated that this will rise to 900 within 10 years of operation.

Why might you ask is this such good news.  The answer is a simple one.  Until now if you live in the Borders and you wanted to be cremated your family, friends and colleagues had to travel to either Edinburgh or Newcastle.  A journey that was often long and stressful and in the winter might not even be possible.  I suspect that this is an issue that affects many other communities in Scotland.

I am originally from Galashiels and still split my time between the Borders and Edinburgh.   The main road to Edinburgh is the A7.  A road that is best described as bendy with few overtaking opportunities, congested during the main commuting times and in the winter hazardous.  So little has changed that my great grandparents, if still alive, would have little trouble recognising this road today.

It is often the case that after a church service in Galashiels the body is taken to Mortonhall crematorium in Edinburgh.  Those attending the crematorium would then have to head back to Galashiels.  As is likely to be case the family will have invited everyone to a venue in Galashiels for a cup of tea, sometimes something a little stronger, and a bite to eat.  This is also a chance to pay your respects to the family.  That often meant a round trip of 80 miles and having to take a full day off work.  The opening of these crematoria will, for large numbers of people, mean not having to make journeys such as this.

As we know a time of bereavement is a difficult enough time without having added a stressful journey.  That is why this is such good news for the Borders and why I would like to note my thanks to all those who made this happen.

This article was published in the latest edition of Age Scotland’s quarterly magazine, Advantage.