No longer the benchmark for beauty
A National Trust boss has warned that some of Britain’s loveliest spots are being blighted by too many memorial benches
CHARLES Alluto bows to no one when it comes to celebrating the beauty of the Channel island of Jersey. But his appreciation of the tourist hotspot has been blighted of late by a mushrooming in the number of memorial benches dotting some of its most attractive beaches.
Now the head of the National Trust on the island for the past 18 years says the sight of so many benches is “a great pity” and that something must be done to prevent a number of picturesque sites becoming “graveyards”.
Alluto, 52, who would rather see relatives encouraged to plant trees in honour of their loved ones, adds: “It’s having an adverse impact on an area of natural beauty. The benches are put in places where people enjoyed that natural beauty but they’re undermining the place they actually enjoyed.
“In Jersey we have lots of different agencies and there needs to be consistency and a policy where memorial benches have a limited lifespan. It is absolutely crucial that they do not become graveyards.
“We only have a certain amount of land to play with, that’s why it has become such an issue here. We’re all going to die one day and that’s not going to stop.”
And Jersey is not the only place where a proliferation of benches has become a problem. In 2015 Bradford Council restricted the number of benches which can be installed at certain locations in order to retain their natural appearance.
A spokesman said: “Following a public consultation the council introduced a district-wide policy relating to the installation of new memorials and the management of unauthorised memorials at council-owned parks, woodland sites and countryside.
“New memorial benches are OPPOSED: Charles Alluto is against the sheer volume of plaques permitted in some areas subject to consultation with relevant people, such as ‘friends of’ organisations at some of our local parks. This policy received a great deal of public support during the consultation and we believe that it is working well.”
Problems have also been reported in Tyne and Wear and West Yorkshire and in Scotland, South Lanarkshire council banned commemorative benches from its parks and open spaces in 2007 after complaints that they were too depressing.
At the time the ban was introduced Gerry Convery, South Lanarkshire Council convener of community resources, said: “This has been a growing problem for the past five years and in some areas it has reached epidemic proportions. People have complained they are out for a picnic with their family and others are laying flowers on benches and leaving personal items.
“It is not the bench or the tree but the memorabilia that goes with it. Many have said they feel disrespectful sitting on the bench.” The National Trust itself does not have a UK-wide policy on memorial benches with the issue decided at a regional or property level.
And the authorities on Jersey are clearly split on the question. Last week the Infrastructure Department announced that no more new memorial benches would be allowed on areas for which they were responsible, including St Brelade’s Bay and Green Island.
Martin Gautier, director of technical services, said: “We get frequent – probably weekly – requests to put memorial benches on public land. It is quite a difficult situation as we have to try to balance the wishes of a bereaved relative with having a sensible approach.
“I personally feel that there are slightly too many. In St Brelade’s Bay there are about 16 in front of the L’Horizon [a four-star hotel that dominates the seafront]. I visited Green Island this week with the [Infrastructure] Minister and we agreed there are too many but we are where we are.”
However Len Norman, the Constable of St Clement whose parish is responsible for Le Hocq Common, said that the practice would continue as long as there was space. He also said that he was not in favour of using only one type of bench.
“Provided they are of a relatively sturdy design, I am quite happy to meet a family’s wishes,” he said. “I think if we make them all uniform and look the same they could look too antiseptic and sterile.
“We have got room there and there are some benches which the parish have put up. We could remove those if needs be to allow someone to put a bench in there to remember a loved one.”
RELATIVES are not the only groups to fund memorial benches, however. Fans often club together to place one in honour of a favourite celebrity. One particularly moving example concerned the late pop star Kirsty MacColl. In her album track Soho Square MacColl sang about “an empty bench in Soho Square” where “the pigeons shiver in the naked trees”.
Following her death in 2000 devotees put a bench in the square in her memory after getting permission from Westminster Council, which currently charges £1,180 for the privilege.