Son’s fury after finding dad’s headstone toppled
ROW WITH CHURCH OVER ‘BOLD AND UNUSUAL’ DESIGN
A BEREAVED son has told of his horror after finding his father’s headstone had been toppled at a Huddersfield church without his knowledge.
Martyn Woodhead laid his dad, Melvyn, to rest at Emmanuel Church in Shelley shortly after he passed away in November, 2020. The 56-year-old dug his dad’s grave himself and later arranged for a headstone to be installed at the plot off Huddersfield Road.
But a row has since broken out between Martyn and the church over the “bold and unusual design” of the headstone, which was fitted on New Year’s Eve, 2021.
Martyn, who paid just under £1,200 for the headstone, said he had wanted to include a racehorse in its design as his dad had a passion for the sport. “He used to own horses and so I thought that was a fitting tribute,” he said.
But three months after installing the headstone, Martyn claims he received a call from the churchwarden telling him they had an issue with its inclusion.
A spokesman for the Anglican Diocese of Leeds (ADoL) said such a headstone would “normally require a special permission” but that the stone was “erected without any permission being requested or granted.”
Yorkshire Live understands the church objects to the colour of the racehorse as it does not match the colour of the gravestone. Martyn claims that, during the call with the churchwarden, he was told the church would be providing him with a form and that he would have to pay an additional fee. But Martyn claims that form never arrived.
“I did not know what I could and could not do and I apologised for doing anything wrong,” said Martyn.
Martyn, who lives in Emley Moor, said he decided to visit his dad’s grave on April 1 as he was passing the church. To his horror, he found his headstone “laid on its back.”
“At first I thought it was just vandalism, but then I saw the carpet underneath it,” he said. “I was quite upset about it.”
He said he immediately called the churchwarden, who he claims told him the headstone was loose. A spokesman for the ADoL confirmed an independent stonemason, who was asked to undertake a survey of the headstone, concluded it was “not safely secured” and took “the immediate decision to lower the stone carefully onto the ground”.
Martyn says he strongly disputes this as the headstone was fitted by three qualified builders, including himself.
He added he has since been in touch with numerous members of the church, including the area’s vicar, and says all have been “very apologetic.”
“I was told I should have been notified (that it was going to be removed) and given an opportunity to be there,” he said. “Death is hard enough. I was very close to my dad - we worked together and went to horse meetings.”
Yorkshire Live has seen
emails between Martyn and the church, who offered a compromise to bring an end to the dispute.
It is understood the church agreed to cover the cost of removing the headstone, as well as re-erecting it, if the colour of the racehorse was changed to one matching Melvyn’s headstone.
But Martyn, who has refused to alter the racehorse, said he feels as though he has been “failed” as he claims he did not receive any documentation outlining what he could and could not include on his father’s headstone before he had it installed.
“It is laid on the floor now and it looks a right mess,” he said. “I do not know what to do. Can I even touch it - or move it?”
A spokesman for the Anglican Diocese of Leeds said: “Our churchyards contain the love and grief of many people. Codes of good practice and laws regarding gravestones and monuments are not a matter of personal discernment or individual taste, but exist caringly for everyone.
“In this instance, a gravestone which, due to its bold and unusual design would normally require a special permission, was erected without any permission being requested or granted.
“Responding to Mr Woodhead’s distress regarding the whole matter, an offer was made to assist in rectifying the situation by lessening the visual impact of the headstone so that it might not need a special permission known as a faculty.
“However Mr Woodhead declined that offer and therefore has been invited to seek the necessary permission through the usual process.”