Skip to content

All content is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0, except where otherwise stated.

To view this licence, visit:
https://nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3

or write to:
Information Policy Team,
The National Archives,
Kew,
London TW9 4DU

or email: psi@nationalarchives.gov.uk.

This publication is available at:
https://lawcom.gov.uk.

© Crown copyright

New funerary methods get legal framework for the first time

Published:

We have published a report with our final recommendations to enable the regulation of new funerary methods

Alternatives to burial and cremation in England and Wales could be made available in future, following a Law Commission report published today that recommends a clear legal framework for the regulation of new funerary methods.

Currently, only burial, cremation, and burial at sea are regulated in England & Wales. New funerary methods — such as alkaline hydrolysis and human composting — are not covered by any specific legal framework, and it is unclear whether their use would be lawful. There have been developments in other parts of the world: Alkaline hydrolysis is available in several jurisdictions, including parts of Australia, Canada, US and most recently in Scotland, and human composting is available in parts of the US and Germany. The Law Commission’s report sets out recommendations which would allow methods such as this, and new methods which may be developed in the future, to be regulated in England and Wales.

The Commission recommends new primary legislation giving the UK Government (in relation to England) and the Welsh Government (in relation to Wales) the power to regulate individual new funerary methods through secondary legislation. Rather than trying to specify rules for each method now, the report proposes a flexible approach to ensure that future developments can be taken into account.

When making regulations about a specific method, the respective Governments would be required to consider three core principles: treating human remains with dignity, protecting the environment, and protecting public health and safety. These principles reflect values that already underpin the law on burial and cremation.

The recommended framework includes safeguards and using a non-regulated method would be a criminal offence. Regulations for each new funerary method would be subject to enhanced parliamentary scrutiny the first time each method is regulated.

Commissioner for Public Law, Professor Alison Young said,

“Burial, cremation and burial at sea are the only funerary methods currently regulated in England and Wales, although new funerary methods are being developed and are available in other jurisdictions. Our recommendations would create a clear, future-proof legal framework that would give the UK Government and the Welsh Government the tools to regulate new options safely, ensuring proper oversight, without affecting existing choices.”

The report follows a public consultation that received 124 responses from religious communities, industry bodies, funeral directors, local authorities, academics and members of the public. It forms part of a wider project on burial, cremation and new funerary methods, with three sub-projects of which this is the second. The report on Burial and Cremation was published in March 2026, and a third sub-project examining people’s rights to decide what happens to their body after death is ongoing.

Other recommendations include:

  • Ensuring that regulations would make provision for the registration of each use of a new funerary method. This would keep the system consistent with how burials and cremations are currently recorded, and ensure there is sufficient oversight.
  • Ensuring that compliance with regulations could be monitored and enforced. Regulations would need to include provision about inspection of facilities. The UK Government and the Welsh Government would also have the power to create criminal offences (or civil financial penalties) in secondary legislation for breaches of specific regulations, with maximum penalties set out in primary legislation.
  • Allowing regulations to be made enabling controlled trials of new methods before they are fully regulated, provided the person whose body is involved gave their prior consent.
  • Prohibiting the use of new funerary methods, other than those that have been regulated or are being used as part of an approved trial. Breach of this prohibition would be a criminal offence.

Two draft Bills — one for England and one for Wales — accompany the report. These give practical legal effect to the recommendations and are intended to provide a modern, consistent and future-proof framework for the regulation of new funerary methods

Further details and the final report are available on the project page.