The son of the boss of one of the region’s most prominent funeral and memorial services has launched a headstone service for the company.

Mohammed Ali Amier Iqbal, 21, now runs Iqbal Memorials after achieving a City and Guilds distinction in Stonemasonry from Weymouth College, Dorset.

He says he is proud to be associated with his dad’s firm, Iqbal Funeral and Memorial Services, which has helped families for several generations with burials and repatriations both into the UK and Abroad to different corners of the world.

Iqbal Funeral and Memorials services was launched by Rashid Nasir Iqbal in 1989.

Ali said: “I left college aged 20 and decided not to go to university but instead looked at launching a headstone and memorial company.

“I worked with my dad to obtain a Registration of Qualified Memorial Fixers (RQMF) license and was awarded the licence after much hard work and practicing day in and day out under the supervision of my grandmother Resham Jan Begum.”

“I am probably one of the only Muslim to get a stonemasonry qualification as only a few colleges actually do this course.”

Iqbal Memorials fix headstones and memorials in all cemeteries in the north west of England.

All memorials are produced to a high standard and erected by fixers on the Register of Qualified Memorial Fixers, which is a father and son team at present.

Ali added: “I can make memorials for you to take abroad. I can also make name plates and house numbers and names for your homes.”

l For information visit www.iqbalmemorials.co.uk or the company’s Facebook site.