PAY AS YOU MOURN
Council plans to introduce fee to provide seats at cemeteries
MOURNERS are being asked to pay a licence fee so that they can sit at the graves of loved ones, after a Welsh council admitted that they can’t afford cemetery benches.
Relatives who want to mourn at cemeteries in Blaenau Gwent are finding they don’t have anywhere to sit – and now the local council is proposing a scheme where mourners can pay a licence fee that will ensure an improved “visitor experience”.
Until 2014, seats and benches were allowed to be donated by members of the public, giving them and other mourners somewhere to sit at the seven council-run cemeteries in the area.
But that practice was banned four years ago and it has now been revealed that it was because too many people were making insurance claims against the council as a result of benches”.
A report published by the council reveals it hasn’t been able to replace them, due to a lack of funds.
“Poorly-manufactured and maintained benches donated by bereaved family members have resulted in several successful insurance claims against the council,” the report said.
“Subsequently, in 2014, a decision was made not to accept or permit donated benches to be installed in cemeteries. “Budget savings and “poorly manufactured restraints are such that the council does not have the resources to purchase and install benches. As such there is now a lack of benches within cemeteries to allow visitors to sit and reflect on the loss of loved ones.”
The new scheme – the memorial bench donation licence scheme – is part of a proposed update of the council’s cemetery rules and regulations, which are being reviewed for the first time in seven years.
The report states there will be no financial implications associated with new rules and regulations because the cost of the donation scheme will be met by the licence fee that mourners will have to pay.
The report adds: “By introducing a memorial bench donation licence scheme benches can be installed and maintained within cemeteries, improving visitor experience.”
There is no indication of how much will need to be donated for the scheme to prove successful.
The issue will de discussed at a meeting of Blaenau Gwent Council’s executive committee on Thursday.