Bereaved families help to make £12,000 donation to cancer charity through Leamington crematorium's fundraising scheme

A cheque for £12,000 has been presented to Macmillan Cancer Support thanks to the generosity of bereaved families allowing the recycling of orthopaedic implants from Oakley Wood Crematorium near Leamington.

The metals used in the replacement of knees and hips, as well as pins used in other bone injuries along with the metals from coffins can all be recycled through the Institute of Cemetery and Crematorium Management’s recycling of metals scheme.

The money earned from recycling these materials is then gifted to Warwick District Council (WDC ) for the chair to allocate to their chosen charity.

WDC’s current chair Councillor Mini Kaur Mangat, along with her consort Councillor Susan Rasmussen and staff from Oakley Wood presented the cheque to Sarah Chadwick, Macmillan’s relationship fundraising manager.

Macmillan was chosen by Cllr Mangat to be one of her supported charities for the year in honour Cllr Rasmussen’s late husband Cllr Jonathan Nicholls, who died in an accident earlier this year.

Cllr Nicholls was due to become chairman of WDC in May and Macmillan was to be one of his chosen charities.

Councillor Mangat said: “My sincere thanks go to the families who have kindly agreed to the donations at such a difficult time.

“Macmillan was the charity chosen by the late Jonathan Nicholls before his untimely passing and him taking up the role of WDC Chair.

"I wanted to honour his wishes and I think it shows how much he cared for the community that he chose a charity that gives people in the community so much practical and emotional support.

“I want to say, that I commend his choice and I too very much admire the ‘whatever it takes to help’ values of Macmillan and the excellent work they do. I was delighted that Susan joined me to present the cheque to Macmillan.”

Sarah added: “This donation has been made possible thanks to the generosity of the bereaved families who’s loved ones were cremated at Oakley Wood, and we are so grateful to them, as well as the chairman of WDC, for nominating Macmillan to receive the funds.

“Donations such as this mean we can continue to do whatever it takes for people living with cancer, and £12,000 is an incredible amount of money which will go a long way in providing vital support. It was a pleasure to meet the Chair today and receive the cheque on behalf of Macmillan. Thank you to Warwick District Council and the selfless bereaved families, for your extremely kind donation.”