The crematorium
Coronavirus (COVID-19) updates
Medway Crematorium grounds and memorial garden are open. You must follow government guidance on social distancing when you visit.
The Chapel of Meditation, which holds our books of remembrance is now open to the public. Only one family bubble can visit at a time. Please do not touch the glass cabinets.
Face coverings
You must wear a face covering in many of our venues. This includes the crematorium chapels. Find out more about face coverings.
Services
From 1 April, both chapels will return to 60-minute service slots. The East Chapel will start on the hour, with the West Chapel starting at half past the hour.
The chapels will need 10 minutes between services so they can be cleaned.
Attending a funeral
During these difficult times, a maximum of 30 friends and family can attend a funeral. Medway Crematorium can supply live webcasting of the funeral service for an additional fee. You will need to arrange this through your funeral director.
Read the latest advice on attending the crematorium and cemeteries, including advice on social distancing.
More coronavirus (COVID-19) updates
Annual remembrance service
This year we are unable to host our annual remembrance service, which is usually on the
About the crematorium
The Medway Crematorium has served the people of Medway and the surrounding areas since 1959. It is owned and managed by Medway Council, and we are committed to maintaining and improving the facilities to make sure they benefit everyone who visits.
It sits on 14 acres of beautiful grounds of mixed woodland, shrub beds, formal planting and grass beneath large and stately trees.
The crematorium building and its grounds have benefited from lots of improvements:
- increased capacity was provided for both chapels in 2015
- 3 new cremators with state of the art emissions monitoring and filtration equipment were installed in 2018
- installation of new monitors and cameras to provide visual tributes and webcasting during
funeral services
Address
Robin Hood Lane
Blue Bell Hill
ME5 9QU
Opening times
Office hours
- Monday to Thursday: 9am to 5pm
- Friday: 9am to 4.30pm
Crematorium gardens
1 March to 31 October:
- Monday to Friday: 8am to 6pm
- Saturday: 10am to 6pm
- Sunday: 11am to 5pm
- Monday to Friday: 8am to 4pm
- Saturday: 10am to 4pm
- Sunday: 11am to 4pm
Bank holidays and public holidays: 11am to 4pm
Transport
Bus 142 from Chatham comes into Blue Bell Hill Village, then it’s a 10 minute walk (half a mile in distance).
The closest train station is Chatham or Rochester. But you would need to take a taxi as the journey to the crematorium is a 15 to 20 minute drive from these stations.
View Medway Crematorium on Google Maps
Facilities
There is a free car park at the crematorium with a number of disabled bays.
There are toilets outside both chapels and a public toilet inside the office reception.
Rules and guidance for visitors
To be respectful to our visitors please:
- dispose of any litter
- do not disturb any mourners or services
- only walk on the grass and clearly marked paths
- be careful not to damage plants, buildings or memorials
- only bring special assistance dogs and no other pet or animal
- do not offer or advertise any goods without written council permission
- do not pin or fix items to any trees or bury items as these will be removed
See also our guidance on flowers and tributes.