Turners Funeral Service on Wembley Avenue send the remains away to have them transformed into a synthetic precious stone.

And for those who really want to keep their loved one close to their heart, the ashes can even be made into a pendant.

Funeral director Clive Kirk said: "What we want to do is give people the option to be able to remember their loved ones in this way, it's down to personal choice."

In the transformation process carbon is extracted from the ashes and then exposed to extreme heat before being compressed to create the diamond.

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Mr Kirk told The Star that the process was invented about 12 months ago by a firm in Ireland.

He said: "I think we're the first firm in South Yorkshire to offer this - I've certainly not heard of anyone else.

"Things are changing and new services are being offered and we always want to move forward as a company.

"We still offer our usual cremation service but this is just another option for people if they want it. So far people have shown a lot of interest."

The company can also arrange for a portion of ashes to be transformed into a memorial glass. The ashes and coloured glass crystals are fused with molten glass under an extremely high temperature.

The pieces of glass are then crafted to form a vase or bubble shape.

The funeral directors are also offering people the chance to choose a green funeral, where loved ones are laid to rest in an eco-friendly 'honeycomb' coffin, 96 per cent made out of condensed cardboard.

Leslie Kirk, from Turners, said: "People have been asking us about environmentally friendly coffins and we just thought we'd like to give people an alternative.

"There are obviously concerns for the environment so this is a way for us to reduce our carbon footprint. These coffins are also cheaper for people to buy."

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