Funeral bosses' jail sentences to be reviewed

The prison sentences of two funeral directors jailed after they stored bodies in unrefrigerated conditions have been referred to the Court of Appeal over concerns they were unduly lenient.

Richard Elkin, 49, and Hayley Bell, 42, were jailed for four years in February after they were found to have kept 46 bodies in unsuitable settings at a funeral parlour in Gosport, Hampshire.

They were convicted of causing a public nuisance, preventing the lawful burial of a body and fraudulent trading at their Elkin and Bell Funerals business.

Solicitor general Ellie Reeves confirmed the case will go to the Court of Appeal after Gosport MP Dame Caroline Dinenage raised concerns from affected families.

In a letter to the Conservative MP, Reeves wrote: "I share your concerns about the sentence imposed, which I have now reviewed.

"Under the ULS (Unduly Lenient Sentence) scheme, I can only properly refer a case to the Court of Appeal if I consider that the sentence appears not just lenient, but unduly lenient.

"After careful consideration I have decided to refer this case to the Court of Appeal as it appears to me that this test is met."

Posting on Facebook, Dame Caroline wrote: "The families impacted by this case believe that the original sentence was unduly lenient and I look forward to the outcome of the case."

Statements from 13 family members of loved ones who were in the care of Elkin and Bell were read to the court, with some saying the uncertainty of how they were treated in death would haunt them forever.

Corrinne Boulton, from Portsmouth, was friends with Bell and trusted her and Elkin to look after their son Albie, who was born prematurely at 21 weeks in June 2023 and lived for 11 minutes.

Boulton said she was "delighted and thrilled" that the pair's sentence will be reviewed.

"What they did to us and our loved ones was calculated, insidious and they continued on knowing full well they were breaking moral code, moral standards and mistreating people, while falsely presenting themselves as kind and compassionate to the deceased," she added.

"I hope their sentences are at least doubled to match the emotional harm and damage they have caused."

A statutory code of conduct for funeral directors is in place in Scotland but in England, Wales and Northern Ireland standards of care in the industry remain unregulated.

Earlier this month, health secretary Wes Streeting said the Department of Health and Social Care will be "taking the lead" in regulating the industry.