POLICY BRIEFING
A Human Taphonomy
Facility for the UK
We are campaigning to allow people to donate their bodies to forensic science after their death, to help improve techniques for finding missing people, identifying unknown individuals, accurately estimating time since death, and convicting perpetrators.
THE PROBLEM
Despite people having been able to donate their bodies to anatomical and medical research in the UK for over 200 years, it is currently not lawful for people to donate their bodies for forensic research in the UK. This is because the Human Tissue Act 2004 did not include forensic research in its list of 'Scheduled Purposes', which means no institution can be licensed to undertake this work.
As a result, UK forensic scientists have to use animal analogues (usually pigs) to undertake empirical research to try to develop search techniques for missing persons, to improve time since death estimations, identify unknown remains or perpetrators, and to train specialist detection dogs.
But pigs are not humans. They do not have the same lifestyles as us - they don't smoke, go to the gym, take medication or drugs, have the same diseases as us, have the same diet as us - so we do not understand how these conditions affect decomposition.
As a result, forensic expert testimony, pathologist testimony, human remains detection dog evidence, and forensic scientist evidence in court is compromised.
As a result, forensic expert testimony, pathologist testimony, human remains detection dog evidence, and forensic scientist evidence in court is compromised.
The UK is falling behind the rest of the world in forensic research and training. We are creating the next generation of forensic scientists… but of pigs.
The Solution
The UK should catch up with the rest of the world and allow body donation for forensic purposes. The Human Tissue Authority should add "forensic purposes" to its list of 'Scheduled Purposes', for which institutions can apply for a licence.
This would enable the establishment of an ethical, governmentally regulated Human Taphonomy Facility, where ethical and scientifically robust human-focussed empirical experiments could be carried out, allowing people to have their final wishes granted.
What is a Human Taphonomy Facility?
A Human Taphonomy Facility is an outdoor laboratory where forensic scientists and professionals from other related disciplines monitor the decomposition of donated human cadavers. Donors are volunteers who have given informed consent before death and want their bodies to be used for ethically sound, scientifically robust, controlled studies that will directly contribute to the advancement of forensic science and the pursuit of justice.
The Rest of the World
There are currently Human Taphonomy Facilities operating across three continents. The UK is falling behind the rest of the world in our understanding of decomposition and interactions between human bodies and the environment.
The Benefits
The UK is already falling behind the rest of the world in forensic science because we cannot do human-focused research. Allowing human-focussed research would mean:
Better methods for finding missing people → Quicker, more successful searches
More accurate estimation of time since death → Greater confidence in crucial information for criminal investigations
Better methods for identifying unknown remains and perpetrators → Quicker answers for families, more successful convictions of perpetrators
A step change in our understanding of the interactions between human bodies and the environment → Sustainable burial methods, lower impact on the environment
Reduction in the use of animals for research
Find Out More
For more information about the campaign, to express support, or to arrange a briefing, please get in touch.
Professor Anna Williams