Privacy Notice

Location: Lake View Bereavement Centre, Chatteris Road, Mepal, ELY, CB6 2AZ
Facility: Lake View Bereavement Centre, Crematorium and Burials
Council: East Cambridgeshire District Council
Policy Owner: Crematorium and Bereavement Service Manager
Effective Date: March 2026
Review Date: March 2028
Version: 1.0

Lake View Bereavement Centre is operated by East Cambridgeshire District Council. We are committed to protecting your privacy and your personal information with care, sensitivity and respect.

We understand that the information you provide is often given during a difficult and emotional time.

This Privacy Notice explains how we collect, use, store and protect your personal information in accordance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.

We will always:

collect only the information we need to provide our services
use your information fairly, lawfully and transparently
keep your information secure and accurate
only share your information where necessary or where the law requires us to do so
retain your information only for as long as legislation or our retention policies require

We regard the lawful and correct treatment of personal data as vital to maintaining the confidence of the many people we deal with. Any personal information you give us will only be used in accordance with principles found in the UK General Data Protection Regulations. For more information about the UK General Data Protection Regulations visit www.ico.org.uk.

What information we collect about you and why

We use your personal information to:

arrange and administer cremations
arrange natural burials
manage Exclusive Rights of Burial
administer memorials, plaques and remembrance products
process Book of Remembrance entries
administer ash interments and ash scattering services
manage Snowdrop Lodge and chapel bookings
arrange webcasting or audiovisual services where requested
process payments
respond to enquiries
meet our legal and regulatory obligations

Burials and cremations

In order to provide these services, we have a legal obligation to record some information about the executor or next of kin of the deceased. This information also forms part of the statutory record of burials and cremations.

Cremation

Your name and address (as the applicant for the cremation) must be provided and recorded in the Cremation Register as set out in The Cremation Regulations 2008 (Part 7)(Regulation 33). This information is used for the purpose of administering and arranging of a cremation.

Whilst not a public document, we, as the Cremation Authority may open the Cremation Registers to any person, as well as issue to any person a copy, or an extract from the same document.

Burials

In the case of providing and arranging a burial, your name and address (as the Registered Owner or purchaser of the Exclusive Rights of Burial) to a grave must be provided and recorded in the Burial Registers as required by The Local Authorities Cemeteries Order 1977 (as amended 1986) Article 11(1).

The Burial Registers are a public document as provided under The Local Authorities Cemeteries Order 1977 (as amended 1986) Article 11(11), “…and shall at all reasonable times be open to inspection by any person free of charge.”

Memorialisation

If you purchase any memorial, plaque, tree dedication, Book of Remembrance entry or other commemorative product, we will collect the information necessary to:

process your order
arrange inscriptions
administer lease periods where applicable
contact you regarding renewals or maintenance

Without this information we may be unable to provide the requested memorial.

Who we share the information with and why

We only share personal information where necessary to provide our services or where required by law.

This may include:

funeral directors
memorial masons
officiants, celebrants and faith representatives
Ministry of Justice
Medical Referee (where applicable)
Environment Agency or other regulators
East Cambridgeshire District Council departments
payment service providers
audiovisual and webcast providers acting on our behalf
County Archives for historic records
law enforcement agencies where legally required

We will never sell your personal information or share it for marketing purposes

We may share personal data with other organisations in the following circumstances.

For law enforcement, regulation and licensing, criminal prosecutions and court proceedings.

If we need to share personal data in order to establish, exercise or defend our legal rights (this includes personal data to others for the purposes of the prevention and detection of fraud).

Our CCTV provider is yet to be confirmed and this document will be updated as soon as the information is available.

How long we hold your information for

A cremation authority must keep the application for cremation and any other certificates or documents relating to a cremation, or an electronic copy of the documents, for a period of 15 years from the date of cremation. Where electronic copies of application forms and documents are kept, the original hard copy may be securely shredded.

The Register of Cremations is kept in perpetuity.

All burial registers, grave registers and grave right registers are kept in perpetuity.

Memorial ownership records - retained in accordance with the cremation authority for a period of 15 years from the date of purchase.

How we use your information

We only use your personal information to deliver services, fulfil an obligation or answer queries you may have. Only those authorised to process your data can access your data. We work hard to ensure our staff can only see the data they need to perform their tasks. All our staff are trained to understand data protection and what they need to do to keep your data secure.

Your rights relating to your information

the right to be informed, this is the information given to you in a privacy notice
the right of access, you can see the personal information we hold about you

The legal basis for processing your information

We process your information as is necessary for one of the following legal purposes:

when you consent to it
to fulfil a contract we have with you
when it is our legal duty
fulfilling a vital interest on behalf of the data subject
fulfilling a public task
when it is in our legitimate interest

Your right to access your information

In regard to all of the above you can request access to information that we hold about you. This is called a Data Subject Access Request; you will need to request this information in writing to dataprotection@eastcambs.gov.uk

Failing to provide personal data

Some information is required by law in order for us to provide burial, cremation and memorial services.

If you choose not to provide the required information, we may be unable to process your request or deliver the service you have requested.

Complaints

If you wish to complain about the way in which your request has been processed, then your complaint will be dealt in accordance with the Lake View Bereavement Centre, Crematorium and Natural Burials Complaint’s Procedure. If you are still unhappy with the decision, you have a right of appeal to the Independent Commissioners Office.

Cookies

To find out more about how we use cookies please see our Cookies Notice.

Links

Our website may contain links to other sites. Please be aware that we are not responsible for the privacy practices of these sites. We encourage our users to be aware when they leave this site and to read the privacy statements applicable on those sites. This privacy policy does not apply to information collected on third parties’ sites.

Your rights

More information about your rights can be found in the East Cambridgeshire District Council’s Privacy Notice. If you would like any further information about how your personal information is used by Lake View Bereavement Centre, then please contact the data protection officer at dataprotection@eastcambs.gov.uk.