A proposed crematorium on Wirral has angered campaigners, who claim the plan is about “cashing in” on the ashes of people in the area.

It is claimed the proposal, made by Horizon Cremation for a crematorium on greenbelt land on Hooton Road in Hooton, which is part of Chester and Cheshire West, is not needed and will cause traffic disruption and pollution in the area.

Horizon Cremation denied the claim they were trying to cash in on people's dead relatives, saying there is proven need for a crematorium between existing sites at Chester and Landican, near Arrowe Park Hospital.

However, campaigners argued that research showed there were already enough crematoria in the area and there was no need for another.

Another claim made against the project was that it will introduce 200 cars every hour to the local road network in Willaston, Little Sutton and Eastham, causing disruption and pollution.

Wirral Globe:

This is what the plans might look like (Credit Horizon Cremation Limited)

Jenny Howitt, planning officer for HADRA (Hooton and District Residents Association), said: “Horizon presents a serene image of reflection and rewilding the environment to pull on people’s heartstrings and build trust.

“But the truth is that they are promoting antiquated methods of cremation and burdening our countryside with unnecessary development instead of helping the planet with green solutions.

“All they care about is cashing in on the ashes of our friends and relatives at the expense of our nature and countryside and the residents who live nearby.”

Liberal Democrat councillor Chris Carubia, who represents nearby Eastham, was also against the proposal.

Cllr Carubia said: "I've signed a petition against it.

“At an open day [last year] I had a conversation with one of the team [from Horizon] who said crematoria in the area were struggling to keep up with demand due to Covid.

“The main argument seemed to be that a mass influx of deaths through Covid would overwhelm them.”

Cllr Carubia was unconvinced by this argument, believing that deaths from coronavirus would start to fall, as they have now done.

The Lib Dem councillor added: “You certainly don’t need [a crematorium] in the greenbelt in the middle of Hooton.

“I know the proposal suggests putting a road in and making it look pretty, but there’s a lot of feeling against it.

“There’s a lot stacked against it and I don’t think we need it. Digging into the greenbelt is something people don’t want to do if there’s not a desperate need for it.”

The greenbelt argument was also key for the Wirral Society, a group which seeks to protect the peninsula’s environment.

Neil Parry, from the Wirral Society, said: “We are always concerned by any proposal that diminishes the open green spaces, especially when the land is protected by the status of being designated as greenbelt.

“The Society has been working with Hooton residents and will be objecting to this application for a crematorium on greenbelt land.”

Horizon Cremation questioned research referred to by campaigners, saying there is proven need for a crematorium in the area.

The company also felt the risks of increased traffic due to the proposal were exaggerated and that while a very busy service might put 200 cars on the road, these tended to happen once or twice per month.

Most services attracted between 12-20 cars, according to Horizon Cremation.

A spokesperson for the company said: “It seems that some well healed residents in Hooton are trying to completely misrepresent what we are doing here.

“Horizon is a small company, run by two people who experienced difficult bereavements within their families and then very poor funerals at their local crematorium.

“We felt so strongly about it that we have been working extremely hard over the past five years striving to establish and build much better crematorium facilities for bereaved families in times of need.

“We want to build new crematoria in areas of the country where there is need, where the need is proven, like in the areas between Chester Crematoria and Landican.

“The many people living in Neston and Ellesmere Port have been given very little choice for a long time, and we want to create an outstanding facility for them.”

The spokesperson added: “As for the claims that we are not green – I would ask people to look at the leading research carried out just up the road at Lancaster University on the carbon impact of funeral choices.

“The research shows that cremation generates the least CO2 of all the main funeral options, and of course our sites use the very best in fully abated technology – world-class systems designed and built in Manchester.

“We specifically focused our needs case on the period up to 2019 to make sure that Covid did not influence the case.

"The reality is, 81% of families in England and Wales opt for cremation as their funeral choice.

"Mortality rates are increasing, and this is happening across the country, and more specifically in Cheshire West and the Wirral, the ONS predict that the death rate will increase by 31.5% by 2041”