Last week, I had the pleasure of attending CBCE 2026 alongside my colleague Nathanael Liu, Account Manager and Digitisation Consultant at TownsWeb & PastView.
Held from 23–25 June at the Hilton Southampton – Utilita Bowl, the Cremation & Burial Communication & Education Conference and Exhibition brought together professionals from across the bereavement sector for three days of discussion, learning, networking and collaboration. With a packed programme covering everything from funeral practices, crematoria design and regulation updates to AI in deathcare and public communication, the event offered a valuable insight into the current priorities and future direction of the sector.
For us, CBCE was not just about discussing TownsWeb’s digitisation services, or our access and discovery platform PastView, but more specifically PastView Chronicle — our purpose-built platform for the bereavement sector, designed to help cemeteries, crematoria and bereavement services save time, reduce costs, improve access to their registers, maps and records, and also make the most of monetisation with a range of revenue generating opportunities.
PastView Chronicle forms part of a wider five-phase process developed by TownsWeb Archiving and to support the digital reimagining of cemetery and crematorium records. This process begins with the careful digitisation of heavy and fragile physical registers, converting them into secure, high-resolution digital files. This not only improves preservation and accessibility but also helps protect original registers from the risks of permanent loss or damage through fire, flood, theft or continuous manual handling.
Following digitisation, records are transcribed by capturing key details such as names, dates and plot numbers, making information quicker to search and retrieve, and easy to view in our book explorer software.
PastView Chronicle supports offline and online publication through a branded, purpose-built website, providing powerful search tools and monetisation opportunities.
What made CBCE particularly valuable was the opportunity to speak directly with people working in the sector every day. The conversations Nathanael and I had highlighted just how important it is for bereavement services to balance modernisation with sensitivity, security and respect for the records they hold.
These records are not just operational documents. They are deeply personal, historically significant and often invaluable to families, researchers and local communities. The ability to make records easier to manage and access, while protecting sensitive information and reducing pressure on staff, is something many organisations are actively considering.
One of the highlights for us was meeting so many people face to face. The exhibition created plenty of opportunities for meaningful conversations, and the networking events gave us the chance to continue those discussions in a more relaxed setting. The networking barbeque and banquet dinner were both memorable parts of the event, even with the rather excessive heatwave adding an extra talking point!
We also held a prize draw at our stand for the chance to win an M&S hamper. Thank you to everyone who entered and took the time to speak with us during the event. We are pleased to announce that the winner is Malcolm Spoor, Deputy General Manager at The London Cremation Company — congratulations, Malcolm!
CBCE 2026 was a fantastic opportunity to listen, learn and connect with the bereavement sector. Nathanael and I came away with a stronger understanding of the challenges organisations are facing, as well as the ways platforms like PastView Chronicle can provide practical, long-term support.
A huge thank you to everyone who visited us, shared their experiences and joined the conversation. We look forward to continuing those discussions and helping more bereavement services explore how PastView Chronicle can support their records, their teams and the communities they serve.
If you'd like to learn more or discuss a specific project, please don't hesitate to get in touch with our team.