Opposed to cemetery - like the majority of residents

RE Charnwood Borough Council cemetery proposal on the edge of Grange Park, Loughborough

I am grateful that the cabinet has delayed this decision and hope that the council will take into account the intense level of opposition to this proposal.

When we bought our houses on this estate there was nothing said about the possibility that we would be living next door to a cemetery. It seems likely that this development will have an adverse impact on our property prices.

What is also concerning is that when this estate was built the developer was obliged to contribute Section 106 money which would be used to provide amenities but, according to the proposal, £82,800 of this money is to be diverted towards subsidising this cemetery.

The other £458,092 is being funded by council resources. There are, I believe, 410 houses on the estate and assuming that they are all Council Tax band D properties, we are contributing £43,870 to Charnwood each year.

This means that the cost of this cemetery is the total contribution that Grange Park council tax payers make to Charnwood over more than a decade.

Charnwood is not obliged to provide cemeteries but if it does so I believe that plots should be offered at their market value and that non-residents should pay a premium. Not everyone wants to be buried when they die and these services should not be subsidised.

The logic behind choosing this site was that Charnwood already own the land but the reality is that it did have a market value and if this had been properly taken into account it would not be such an attractive location.

Like the vast majority of Grange Park residents, I am vehemently opposed to this proposal and intend to do all that I can to prevent it taking place.

Russell Ford