FOI request (FOIR-797468670)

I am writing to request information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 regarding the burial fees and policies of Hastings Borough Council. Specifically, I am seeking details on the charges applied to residents versus non-residents and the income generated from these services.

Please provide the following information:

1. Burial Fees and Surcharges

• Does the council currently apply a surcharge or increased fee for the burial of individuals who lived outside the borough/council at the time of their death?
• If yes, what is the current "Resident" fee vs. the "Non-Resident" fee for:
• A standard adult interment (burial).
• The purchase of the "Exclusive Right of Burial" (the lease for the plot).
• What is the specific criteria used to define a "Non-Resident" (e.g., number of years lived outside the borough)?

2. Financial Data For the most recent completed financial years (2022/23, 2023/24 and 2024/25), please provide:

• The total gross income received by the council from all burial and cemetery-related payments.
• The total income specifically generated from the non-resident surcharge (i.e., the "extra" amount paid by non-residents above the standard resident rate).
• If the specific surcharge income is not tracked as a separate line item, please provide the total number of non-resident burials conducted in the same financial year.
• If you could provide this info in an Excel spreadsheet that would be great. 

3. Policy and Rationale

• Please provide the date when the current non-resident fee structure was brought in

Format of Response: If any of this information is already published on your website, please provide the direct links to the relevant documents or pages.

1. Burial Fees and Surcharges

a. Application of Non‑Resident Surcharge

Yes. Hastings Borough Council applies double fees for non‑residents for full‑earth burials and Exclusive Rights of Burial (EROB). Cremated remains plots and ashes interments are not subject to double fees.

b. Definition of a Non‑Resident

A non‑resident is defined as a case where neither the deceased nor the grave purchaser resides within the Borough of Hastings, and therefore does not pay council tax to the borough.

There is no fixed minimum period of residency used to determine eligibility. In practice, temporary absences (for example, where a person has moved out of the borough for end‑of‑life care) may still be treated as resident, but this is assessed on a case‑by‑case basis.

c. Current Resident and Non‑Resident Fees

All Exclusive Right of Burial (EROB) fees and full‑earth interment fees listed below are doubled for non‑residents, unless either the deceased or the grave purchaser was a resident of the Borough at the date of death or purchase.

Where a grave was originally purchased at the resident rate, subsequent interments in that grave will continue to be charged at the resident rate, even if the grave owner has since moved away.

Cremated remains plots and ashes interments are charged at the same rate for residents and non‑residents.

Exclusive Right of Burial (50‑year term)

Interment Fees

Additional Notes:

• Ordinary (non‑purchased) grave spaces are only available where the deceased was a resident of the Borough at the time of death.
• Items listed as “No Charge” for children are reclaimed from the Government’s Children’s Funeral Fund.
•  

2. Financial Data

• Total gross income from burial and cemetery‑related payments
• Answer: 2022-23: £181,382, 2023-24: £154,812.40, 2024-25: £200,459.53.
• Income specifically generated from non‑resident surcharges
• Answer: Information not held as not split on our system
• Number of non‑resident burials (if surcharge income is not separately recorded)
•  

Answer:

2022-2023

Resident - 177

Non Resident - 8

2023-2024

Resident  - 131

Non Resident - 3

2024-2025

Resident - 150

Non Resident - 11                                       

3. Policy and Rationale

We do not hold a formal record of the date when the current non‑resident fee structure was introduced.

Historically, such fee structures were commonly adopted to:

• Protect local burial land for residents
• Reflect that residents contribute to cemetery provision through council tax
• Manage long‑term land availability and maintenance costs