Council rejects motion on memorial benches in cemeteries

A motion allowing bereaved people to erect memorial benches at cemeteries has been rejected by councillors.

The motion was put forward in a full council meeting on July 13 by Aber Valley councillor John Roberts.

Cllr Roberts, who represents Plaid Cymru, said the current policy surrounding memorial benches “unjustly deprives individuals, families and friends from paying their full respects and being able to remember as they would like, a departed loved one”.

He said vulnerable people who can’t stand for very long are being “discriminated against” in new parts of cemeteries.

He added: “Not every family wants to organise a bench, not every family can afford to. But some would like it done and some of them are elderly and others have difficulty standing up for a long time.

“They could do with some form of seating close to the reason they are in that cemetery. Some cemeteries have got a good number of benches, some have less. We could help a few people out.”

Plaid Cymru group leader Colin Mann called on the council to be more flexible on the matter and said: “It is very difficult if there is nowhere to sit down.”

Cllr Mann, who represents Llanbradach, suggested applications could be decided on a case-by-case basis.

Cllr Nigel George, the council’s Cabinet Member for Waste, Public Protection and Street Scene, oversees cemeteries as part of his cabinet role.

Speaking at the meeting, he said: “It’s not really a blanket ban, it’s only in certain cemeteries where they reach saturation point with the benches.

“You can still request a bench being put in a cemetery, and as a matter of fact the council will even pay for it.”

Mark S Williams, the council’s Corporate Director for Economy and Environment, said: “We strategically place benches in our cemeteries. Obviously it is not possible to have a bench near every grave. It could stop access to mowing machinery, there may be services there, there’s a whole raft of reasons why it’s not possible to have benches near every grave.

“There are 83 benches at Bedwellty [cemetery]. There were almost more benches than graves there at one point in time. We also have the issue where members of the public have placed benches and then they tried to ban anyone else from sitting on them.”

Mr Williams said the council offers people the option to pay for a plaque in memory of a loved one, as well as the chance to plant a memorial tree.

Nelson’s Labour councillor Sean Morgan argued cemeteries could become “very cluttered” if there was an “open door policy” on memorial benches.

Fellow Labour councillor Tudor Davies, who is chair of the council’s Environment and Sustainability Scrutiny Committee, pointed to the fact the current policy, which was introduced in 2008, had been backed once again by the scrutiny committee last month.

Cllr Davies said the policy was introduced to ensure cemeteries could be maintained to a high quality.