GWENT is in the top 10 locations in the UK which saw the biggest increase in funeral costs in the last year.

A report out today shows funeral prices in Gwent have increased by nine per cent which equates to £281.

The average funeral in Wales cost £3,291 in 2014 which increased to £3,461 in 2015. Wales was the nation which saw the biggest increase in funeral costs in the last year with a 5.2 increase from 2014.

The Royal London National Funeral Cost Index Report 2015 showed an increase of 3.9 per cent in the past year for funeral costs in the UK. This is higher than annual UK inflation of 1 per cent (as measured by RPI).

The average funeral is now £3,702 - up £140 from £3,562 in 2014.

Gwent Crematorium based in Cwmbran is one of the busiest crematorium in the UK, holding over 2,800 cremations a year in a single chapel.

Prices for burial in 2014 in Cwmbran were £ 3,618 which increased to £3,835 in 2015. Prices for cremation in 2014 were £2,875 which increased to £3,221 in 2015.

Gwent Crematorium is one of the busiest crematorium in the UK, holding over 2,800 cremations a year in a single chapel.

Royal London’s National Funeral Cost Index 2015 reveals the price of a funeral has risen almost as rapidly as house prices since 1980. The new index reveals the cost of a funeral continues to be a postcode lottery.

A survey of 2,000 people by YouGov found more than one in ten people (13 per cent) struggle to pay for a funeral today. On an individual level, funeral debt is £1,318 - collectively, across the UK this equates to £98.9m.

Royal London says to cope with rising costs people are cutting-back when it comes to paying for essential items such as coffins, and optional elements such as flowers. The most striking example is coffins: last year’s index found people spent £1,108 on average, but the 2015 report shows this has dropped to £989, a decrease of 11 per cent. People are also exploring alternative burial options – 8 per cent are now ‘woodland’ or ‘‘natural’.

Simon Cox, a funeral cost expert at Royal London, said: “Our study shows people are striving to meet funeral price hikes, which they have little control over. Given the stressful situation, shopping around for a funeral is often not an option. Instead people are coping by cutting back on non-essentials if possible, and reconsidering how loved ones are buried."

“The UK funeral system still displays fundamental failings, which we reported last year. Vulnerable bereaved people are taking on increased debt; and we predict this problem will worsen if steps are not taken to tackle the many, persistent causes driving up the cost of funerals.”

Royal London is urging policy-makers to look at the issues that are causing funeral cost rises – including the scarcity of burial plots and the inadequate Social Fund Funeral Payment system. It wants a full and fundamental review of the fund - the UK’s state benefit designed to help those struggling with funeral debt.

The report also showed two-thirds of funerals are paid with savings, one in five funerals are pre-paid via a ‘Funeral Plan’, and an insurance policy of some kind pays for 18 per cent of funerals.