Most grates are made from cheap cast iron and do not last. They also consist of three separate parts - a base made of cast iron, and a two-part frontpiece. The bottom frontpiece allows one to take out an ashpan, which is usually lightweight and becomes useless quickly.
Recently, after some frustration and some near-misses as the frontpiece fell outwards while hot, I designed my own grate and had it made by a blacksmith - [broken link removed]in West Cork. More accurately, I adapted the design of one of their standard models no FG 103.
The result is a two-piece very heavy-weight forged steel grate in which the base and front are a single unit, and the lower-front and ashpan are another unit - in a 16-inch fireplace. The grate is designed to bring the fire 100mm forward on the hearth. The ashpan catches virtually all of the ash, and it is almost never necessary to take out the grate for cleaning.
The fire burns so very much better, and above all, is safe, in that the front will never fall forward. And since it is forged steel, I expect it to last a long time.
Of course, it was not cheap at €250, but really good.