Despite rarely being used before the Covid-19 pandemic, webcasting funerals and cremations has become hugely popular in recent weeks.

The service comes at added cost in all of Kent's nine crematoria, ranging in price from £25 to £65, and a recording to keep of the service will set you back further.

The crematorium with the highest costs is Tonbridge's Kent and Sussex Crematorium at £65 to watch a webcast and £50 to purchase a DVD or USB copy of the full service. One package does however offer a live webcast and 28 day access to a downloadable recording for £70.

The cheapest is Barham Crematorium, which offers both a live webcast and recording for a combined price of £30.

Despite what some may view as a high pricetag for a now-essential method of mourning, these figures are actually far lower than pre-coronavirus levels.

Some locations are struggling to keep up with the increased demand, with Hawkinge Crematorium no longer being able to offer a live webcast but recordings still available.

A spokesman for The Crematorium and Memorial Group - which runs the facility near Folkestone - said: "In normal circumstances we can offer webcasting at Hawkinge Crematorium and had intended to offer this facility at a reduced cost of £25 per funeral during the coronavirus virus pandemic.

"Due to demand and the technical limitations of the service, we are currently unable to provide a live stream of the funeral but can send a recording to all mourners that would have liked to attend.

"Mourners can download the recording to keep if they wish. Our fee to receive the recording is £25 per funeral."

Likewise, Barham Crematorium near Canterbury has had to tell some mourners that a webcast isn't available due to the high demand, including an 80-year-old whose sister's service went ahead on Wednesday with only a handful of her children in attendance.

However a spokeswoman denied that Barham's capabilities are unavailable.

She said: "I am sorry that it appears that there wasn't any webcasting available for this service at Barham Crematorium on Wednesday.

"I have checked with my colleagues locally and can confirm that we were offering web-casting and recordings, so I am unsure why this was not made available in this instance. I also believe that our local funeral directors should have been aware of this.

"I am very sorry that this has happened - I have asked my colleagues locally to look into this so that we are able to address any issues at the crematorium immediately."

The family of the woman have however thanked staff for the service, which they said was respectful and well-organised despite the recent surge in use.

Only a maximum of 10 attendees can be present as decreed by the government, however funeral services have not been cancelled altogether like weddings have.

Other measures have also been implemented due to the updated social distancing guidelines, including in Maidstone's Vinters Park where the curtain will be drawn after the committal so mourners will not be able to touch the coffin before leaving.

All hymn books have also been removed from the main chapel.

The cap on attendees has been welcomed by most crematoria, who recognise the necessity of such measures.

A spokeswoman for the Westerleigh Group, which runs the Charing and Barham sites, said: "We think it is particularly important to protect those who are vulnerable and the over 70s at this time, so we now offer our webcasting service at a significantly reduced fee.
"We hope that this facility will enable mourners who otherwise would have attended a service to participate remotely.

"If families would like to webcast a service, they just need to speak to their funeral director to make the necessary arrangements.

"At Westerleigh, we believe that it is vitally important for the bereaved and their families, that ceremonies are carried out with the utmost respect and dignity, and in the current climate our colleagues are working very hard in the background to make sure that this continues."

Meanwhile some councils have announced they will be shutting crematorium grounds due to the coronavirus, with visitors only permitted for the funeral services themselves.

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