Federation of Burial and Cremation Authorities Archive

Scope and Content

Journals, minutes of the National Executive Committee, general correspondence, reports on visits to crematoria, conference programmes and reports on issues relating to cremation and burial

  • Annual reports and conference reports, 1930-2019
  • Minutes of AGMs and committees, 1949-2016
  • Crematoria visits and reports, 1991-2008
  • Office and subject files, 1990s-2017
  • Issues of Resurgam (journal), 1950s-2017
  • Other publications, 1920-1999

Administrative / Biographical History

The Federation of Cremation Authorities was founded in 1923 (with its first rules approved in 1924), as part of the Cremation Society. In 1938, it was established as a separate body from the Society, with its own constitution, under the nameFederation of British Cremation Authorities. The Federation has revised its constitution and membership on several occasions since then, most recently in 2006 when full membership was extended to Burial Authorities.

The Federation currently (2020) represents ca.85% of cremation authorities within the UK, and advocates for the interests of burial and cremation authorities, both local authority and private sector. It also shares technical expertise for theoperation of crematoria and cemeteries, sets standards through publication of two codes of practice, provides training for crematorium technicians and cemetery operatives, manages a crematorium inspection scheme, sponsors an annual conference (since2007, jointly with the Cremation Society of Great Britain)., and is represented in other groups within the burial and cremation industry. Its quarterly journal, Resurgam, has been published since 1958.

Note that this collection includes no records of the Confederation of Burial Authorities or Association of Burial Authorities, both of which are now part of the separate Institute of Cemetery and Crematorium Management (which was itself formerlyknown as the Institute of Burial and Cremation Administration).

Further notes on the history of the Federation are available on its website at www.fbca.org.uk, and within the history of cremation 1874-1974 on the Cremation Society website.

Access Information

Open for consultation, with a few exceptions to protect personal data

Acquisition Information

Donated by the Federation to Durham University, 22 August 2019 (accession reference Misc.2019/20:8)

Other Finding Aids

Conditions Governing Use

Permission to make any published use of material from the collection must be sought in advance from the Head of Collections, Durham University Library and Collections (e-mail PG.Library@durham.ac.uk) and, where appropriate, from the copyrightowner. The Library will assist where possible with identifying copyright owners, but responsibility for ensuring copyright clearance rests with the user of the material.

Related Material

See also the archive of the Cremation Society of Great Britain.