Bedford crematorium installs postbox for grieving families

Next to the box is a bench where people can sit, reflect and remember their loved ones after they have posted their letters

A new postbox has been installed at a crematorium for grieving people to send letters to relatives they have lost.

The "Postbox to Heaven" at Norse Road Crematorium in Bedford is located on one of the columns by the main office.

Lynn Gell, who runs the crematorium's bereavement services, said the box could help people deal with grief.

She said if they got enough letters they would consider shredding them and mixing them with wildflower seeds in the grounds of the cemetery.

Ms Gell praised the idea as "grief can affect people in different ways and this is a way of supporting families in the long term".

The postbox was inspired by "Postbox to Heaven" - an idea from Matilda Handy, a nine-year-old girl in Nottinghamshire who wanted to write to her late grandparents.

The first postbox in the country was organised by nine-year-old Matilda, from Nottinghamshire

Bedford Borough Council, which installed the postbox, said it had received a number of requests from residents for a similar box locally.

Matilda's mother, Leanne Handy, was pleased the idea had spread to other parts of the country.

She said: "It is really overwhelming to think it has reached that many people."

The cemetery has other memorial options available, including putting handwritten messages on Christmas trees in the grounds