A PET crematorium and memorial gardens is set to expand after being granted planning permission from a council.

Rossendale Pet Crematorium will build a chapel of rest, office space and crematorium at its premises based on the outskirts of Crawshawbooth.

Established in 1967, the crematorium was initially built as a burial ground for much-loved animals but over the years the company has noticed a shift in required services from burials to the individual cremation of pets.

Duncan Francis, director of the crematorium, said “We are delighted to have gained planning consent.

“Pet owners want to give their pets the best funeral care they can and the new chapel of rest will allow local people to say their farewells in greater privacy, which should help to ease the pain of parting.”

To make way for the new crematorium, the plans outline the need to demolish the existing building which will allow for a new crematorium which will incorporate a chapel of rest and include three state-of-the-art cremators.

Bosses at the crematorium and memorial gardens have also sought to address planning concerns by finding ways to minimise the visual and environmental impact of the expansion

Mr Francis said: “We have listened to the needs of local people and our clients to strike a balance in meeting demand in a sustainable way from harnessing the latest technologies to planting of shrubs to benefit wildlife in the memorial gardens.”

In keeping with its rural surroundings, the chapel of rest will be clad in sandstone with a natural grey slate roof, while the crematorium will feature weathered larch timber as with other agricultural buildings in the vicinity.

Rossendale Pet Crematorium and Memorial Gardens is part of CVS Group plc, which owns over 460 veterinary surgeries in in the UK and Netherlands, together with four laboratories and seven pet crematoria providing integrated services to pet owners.

The Rossendale site has been located at its current site for over 50 years and currently employs 14 local people.

The expansion will create local jobs during the construction and opportunities for a further nine employees over the next five years.

The new facilities will be opened in 2019.