The future of a digital autopsy service used to investigate deaths across the Black Country has been secured.

It was feared that the service, which is used by the Black Country Coroner to conduct non-invasive postmortems, would close. Sandwell Council and the other Black Country councils have come to an agreement that it is hoped will secure the future of the service.

The scanning service, based at Sandwell Valley Crematorium in West Bromwich, provides an alternative to traditional post mortem when the coroner is determining a cause of death. 

The facility, which is run by iGene UK, opened in 2014. Sandwell Council’s deputy leader and cabinet member for neighbourhoods and communities Councillor Syeda  Khatun said:

“We are really pleased our discussions with iGene UK have been successful. This is a valuable facility, not only for the Black Country Coroner who is very much in favour of using digital autopsy wherever possible, but also for families who take comfort from the use of the digital autopsy facility when they lose a loved one.

“For a number of years Sandwell has played a significant role in establishing digital autopsy as an option for coroners. We are confident the arrangements we have put in place should ensure this essential service can be available for many years to come.”