Shrewsbury's baby ashes inquiry to be used as template for new investigation

The justice secretary Michael Gove has ordered an investigation into historical practices at Hull crematorium, where families allege their children's ashes were scattered without their permission.

It's the second inquiry to be held in England following the Shrewsbury baby ashes scandal.

Mr Gove said the Hull investigation would use the Emstrey inquiry as a template.

An investigation into Emstrey found that more than 60 families had been denied ashes at the crematorium.

A consultation followed the scandal looking at how cremations across Britain were administered. Its launch came after an independent inquiry carried out by David Jenkins into the way infant cremations were carried out at Emstrey between 1996 and 2012.

Since then, families have expressed concerns about another 30 crematoria, including Hull and Boston.

Potential changes included in the consultation include the appointment of an inspector of crematoria for England and Wales and a new universal code of practice. It has also suggested that reviews of crematorium facilities and out-of-hours services provided by coroners could also be undertaken.

A campaign group was formed by Glen Perkins, from Monkmoor to demand for an inquiry into the scandal and for laws to be changed governing the practices at crematoriums.

In April, Mr Perkins, founder of Action for Ashes, met with Justice Minister Caroline Dinenage along with other parents to discuss changes in law following the scandal.

His four-month-old daughter Olivia died in 2007 and was cremated at Emstrey Crematorium and at the time the family were told there were no ashes.