Plan to improve county mortuary services explained

Artist impression of the County Mortuary building

The University Hospitals of Northamptonshire is working with West Northamptonshire Council to deliver better mortuary facilities for bereaved families in Northamptonshire.

The council is opening a state-of-the-art £9.4m County Mortuary at Riverside Business Park near Northampton. Construction work on this project began in March 2025.

When it opens all coronial deaths (deaths that legally require investigation by a Coroner including in some cases a postmortem) will go to the new facility.

In addition it is proposed all hospital deaths will also move the new facility prior to being released to funeral directors.

Expected deaths in the community will continue to be handled as they are now, with no involvement of UHN, or the Council Mortuary, and families will liaise with their GP and family appointed funeral director. If the cause of death is unknown, sudden/unexpected or unnatural they will require investigation by the Coroner.

The County Mortuary will provide enhanced facilities for private viewing and identification. It is purpose-built and organised to enable an appropriate, respectful, and compassionate experience for bereaved families.

Appropriate viewing facilities

Over the last five years – since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic – offering a viewing facility for deceased relatives in hospital mortuaries has largely not been possible until they have been released to the family or their funeral director, on average 8-10 days after they have passed away.

While a limited viewing service was recently recommenced at Northampton General Hospital it has not recommenced at Kettering General Hospital due to lack of space

Viewing can be an important point in the bereavement journey and we want to support it as best we can.

We understand families want to have access to say goodbye to a loved one as part of the grieving process sometimes as soon after death as possible.

Often hospital staff at both Kettering and Northampton general hospitals support this in a ward area and this will continue at both of hospitals.

But once the deceased family member has moved to a hospital mortuary - because of the lack of viewing facilities – it has meant families have had to wait until the deceased has been released to their funeral directors.

The new County Mortuary will make viewing possible once again in a modern and appropriate environment. Waiting times will be short and viewing will be available in a dedicated bereavement suite with a winter garden.

The County Mortuary will have free car parking, is on public transport routes, and will provide a modern welcoming environment meaning families don’t have to return to the hospital where they may have difficult memories of their relative at end of life.

We understand some residents may have concerns about the distance to Riverside in Northampton.

While this is on established bus routes and easily accessible by car, we will be considering how to support families who feel unable to visit the new facility and do not feel they can wait until a loved one is in the care of their funeral director.

Transport to the County Mortuary

Both hospitals will retain small mortuaries on site but each day the officers from the County Mortuary will visit to move loved ones to the County Mortuary.

This will be done in a dignified way with special ambulances and will be subject to stringent conditions and monitoring.

Once at the County Mortuary families will be able to view loved ones by arrangement if they haven’t been able to do so on the ward before transfer.

The County Mortuary will have staff trained in helping families dealing with their bereavement in a supportive way.

Background

West Northamptonshire Council has the responsibility for providing facilities for the county’s coronial investigations/postmortems.

This led to the proposal to build the £9.4m County Mortuary at Riverside in Northampton and it was granted planning permission in December 2024.

The initial aim was to improve the experience for families whose loved ones require a coronial investigation/postmortem and hence may not go to funeral directors for some time.

These families have sometimes had to wait for weeks or months because viewing facilities are not available in hospitals.

In addition the new facility will also address issues that the county’s mortuary resources were stretched beyond the limit at hospitals – especially during the pandemic. This had required the opening of temporary mass casualty facilities elsewhere in the county.

The new County Mortuary will also replace the temporary mass casualty mortuary established at the Leys near Wollaston during the Covid-19 pandemic. It will be equipped to support emergency services and police in the event of a major incident, including mass fatality situations. This capability ensures Northamptonshire is better prepared to respond to unexpected challenges while continuing to provide essential services to the community. 

In March 2025 the UHN Trust Board agreed that - in order to support a much-improved service for deceased patients and their families and loved ones - its preferred option would be to relocate both the remaining aspects of both hospital mortuaries to the new Riverside facility from the autumn.

This is a practical way of making the most of this state-of-the-art new facility and improving the experience for families who would like to spend time with their loved one before an appropriate funeral.

The University Hospitals of Northamptonshire is in the process of engaging with its staff and other stakeholders on the plan.

The aim is to ensure all views can be heard and we can work with partners on delivering an excellent and sympathetic service to our local residents. We will be taking all views on board and considering appropriate actions.

For more information, please read these frequently asked questions.