A sure thing: Empty betting shop in Blackpool set to be turned into funeral home

Christopher 'CJ' Malone, of Strickens Lane in Barnacre, has won planning permission to open up in the old William Hill branch at 380 Talbot Road, beside Bargain Booze and close to the junction with Devonshire Road in Layton.

A reception area, arrangement room, chapel of rest, and holding room for bodies is due to be built in the 75 sq m unit, alongside staff and customer toilets.

The main operating hours of the home will be 8am-5pm from Monday-Friday, with viewings in the chapel of rest until 7pm.

Twenty-four hour access will also be needed so staff can collect the dead, although embalming and related procedures would be done at a different address, documents said.

Funeral directors would use a rear entrance, off Empire Grove, which runs off Talbot Road between takeaway Pars and furniture firm HSL, while there are parking spaces for customers at the front of the building.

Although there are flats above the unit, the council said: "It is not considered the proposed use would create any more noise disturbance than the existing use..."

It added: "Some out-of-hours access would variously be required for 'intercare' purposes. However, use of the site at these hours would only be carried out when absolutely necessary and would consist only of bringing the deceased into their care during the night, which would take around 10-15 minutes.

"The process would be as quiet as practicable and an estate car would be used for the transportation which would not make a significant amount of noise."

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