Policies & Procedures

1 Fees and Payments

The fees set out below apply where the person to be interred or in respect of whom the right is granted is (or immediately before death was) a parishioner of Northorpe Parish, or in the case of a still-born child, where a parent is (or was at the time of interment) a parishioner. In all other cases, the fees will be doubled. The fees set out below are applicable from 1st April 2016 and will remain in place until further notice is given.  It must be noted that the fees in 1.1 and 1.2 below exclude the cost of digging of the grave.

Please Note :  If the interment is in a new grave and the bereaved family wish to reserve that grave for a future burial and/or place a memorial upon it, it is also necessary to purchase an exclusive right to burial in that grave, as per 1.2 below.

The fees indicated in 1.3 include the first inscription.  For each inscription thereafter, a fee of £25 is payable for a headstone not exceeding 92cm (3 feet) in height and a fee of £10 is payable for a vase or tablet not exceeding 30cm (1foot) in height by 30cm (1 foot) in width.  

2  Interments  

2.1  Interment Arrangements  

No interment shall take place without the express permission of the Council.   Requests for interment must be made at least three working days prior to the interment to the Clerk to the Council. The hours of interment shall be between 9.30am and 4.00pm, Monday to Friday. Interments will not normally take place at weekends or on public holidays, although Saturday interments will be permitted in special circumstances and due consideration will be given to religious requirements which may require alteration to the foregoing.  

Burials must take place in the grave space allocated. The Clerk to the Council will mark the grave prior to the interment to facilitate this.  

All fees and charges must be paid to the Clerk to the Council by the date of the interment. Cheques should be made payable to Northorpe Parish Council.  

2.2  Grant of Exclusive Right of Burial  

The exclusive right of burial in an unused and unreserved grave space may be purchased by a member of the public for a period of 50 years at the fee set out in section 1.2. For the avoidance of any doubt, memorials may only be placed on graves for which an exclusive right to burial has been purchased.  

2.3  Grave Digging  

It is the responsibility of the funeral director (employed by the bereaved family) to engage the services of the grave digger at their own expense. The Council expects the funeral director to hold the appropriate public liability insurance for any work carried out at Northorpe Cemetery and requires a copy of that insurance certificate to be sent to the Council on an annual basis. It also requires that the funeral director has a safe working procedure that applies to grave digging and backfilling, a copy to be supplied to the Council on request. Under its policy, the funeral director must note that the Council requires that the grave digger installs appropriate shoring equipment during the excavation to support the ground and prevent collapse, to protect the health and safety of the grave digger during digging and the mourners, clergy and funeral director’s staff during the interment.    

If, following the excavation of any grave, the grave digger and/or funeral director intends to leave it unattended for any period of time, a temporary barrier must be erected by the grave digger and/or funeral director around the grave or the grave be securely covered, to prevent falls. 
On backfilling the grave, the Council requires that the soil is compacted every six inches in depth by treading, to prevent the need for excessive re-instatements. The grave shall be left turfed flat, the site left neat and tidy with any surplus spoil removed to the designated area and the wreaths and flowers carefully placed.   

3 Memorials – Headstones, Tablets and Vases 

3.1 Responsibility for the safety of memorials

3.1.1   Owners of Memorials 

The primary responsibility for the condition and the inherent safety of a memorial during its entire lifespan rests with the owner of the memorial or his/her heirs. The owner has a duty of care to maintain the memorial in a good state of repair at all times so that it does not represent a hazard to themselves, to members of the public or to those working in the cemetery, and to abide by the cemetery policy.     

If the owner is concerned at any time about the condition of the memorial or the likelihood of it falling, they should consult the original stonemason or contact the National Association of Memorial Masons (NAMM) for advice at the earliest opportunity. Insuring the memorial will guard against damage to the stone itself and assist in relation to damage to third parties and the Council recommends that owners take out such insurance.  

3.1.2   Monumental Masons 

The mason acts as the agent for the owner in the construction and erection of the memorial and has a duty of care to manufacture, supply and erect the memorial in accordance with the regulations set out in the cemetery policy. Any instability due to poor workmanship, to failure to comply with the code of practice specified by the Council or to failure to comply with cemetery regulations remains the responsibility of the mason.  

The Council requires that all masons undertaking the erection of memorials in Northorpe Cemetery carry adequate public liability insurance and, for each memorial, that they sign an undertaking that they will comply with the NAMM recommended methods of installation (as laid down in NAMM’s code of working practice) and any relevant Standards.    

The Council recommends that memorial owners obtain a written guarantee from their mason in relation to the workmanship on their memorial.  

3.1.3   The Council 

Northorpe Parish Council, as owner and operator of Northorpe Cemetery, owes a general duty of care to users of the cemetery and the adjacent designated overflow land. It has health and safety responsibilities to its staff under Section 2 of the Health & Safety at Work Act 1974 and responsibilities to its visitors under Section 3 of the same act. The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 places a legal duty on the Council to assess the risks from cemetery structures and work activities and to ensure that risks are controlled.     

The Council also has responsibilities under the Local Authorities Cemetery Order 1977. In the event of any memorial becoming dangerous or defective the Council can, in accordance with the powers and procedures set out in Article 16(2) and Schedule 3 of that Order, give notice to the owner requiring them to repair or to remove the memorial. It is important that the owner keeps the Council informed of any change to their address to enable contact to be maintained. 

In essence the Council, as cemetery operator, must do all that is reasonably practicable to ensure that people are not exposed to risks to their health and safety whilst in the cemetery and/or the adjacent designated overflow land. This means that the Council needs to have a strategy for identifying and dealing with memorials that constitute a risk, even though the primary responsibility for memorial safety rests with the owner. However, for the avoidance of any doubt, whilst the Council must have such a strategy to identify memorials that constitute a risk (see section 3.4), it is the legal responsibility of the owner to ensure that action is taken to repair the memorial to the required standard and to meet any costs that may be incurred in so doing.   

3.2 Dimensions & Specification  

No memorial or any other article shall be allowed to be erected other than one only of the following:

 i) a headstone not exceeding 92 cm (3 feet) in above-ground height, 76cm (2 feet 6 inches) in width and 10cm (4 inches) in thickness. 

ii) a memorial vase or tablet not exceeding 30cm (1 foot) in any dimension placed at the head of the grave.   

The grave identification number (provided to the monumental mason by the Council) is to be engraved in small letter/numbers on the rear of the memorial in a visible position.       

All memorials must be constructed and erected/re-erected in accordance with the National Association of Monumental Masons (NAMM) Code of Working 
Practice and all relevant Standards in force at the time of construction/erection.     

No kerbing shall be erected around the grave plot.    

3.3 Procedures for Memorial Erection  

No headstone or other memorial shall be placed in the cemetery (or the adjacent designated overflow land) and no additional inscription shall be made on any memorial without the express permission of the Council.

Memorials are only permitted on graves where (in addition to the requirements of section 2.2) a Permit to Erect and Maintain a Memorial has been purchased from the Council (a copy of which is contained as Appendix 1). The permit will be granted for a period of 25 years. When seeking to purchase the Permit to Erect and Maintain a Memorial, the prospective permit holder (i.e. the owner of the memorial) and the monumental mason must also complete a Memorial Application Form (a copy of which is attached as Appendix 2). Amongst the information required on this form is the name and address of the relative of the deceased (or other party) that will be regarded as the owner of the memorial, details of the proposed work and the approximate date that the work will be carried out.    

The Council also requires that, on an annual basis, monumental masons provide the Council with a copy of the public liability insurance certificate that applies to any work carried out at Northorpe Cemetery (or the adjacent designated overflow land). A copy of the monumental mason’s safe working procedure that applies, from time to time, to the erection of memorials may also be requested.  

All fees and charges must be paid to the Clerk to the Council within 10 working days of the issue of the Permit (for a new memorial) or by the date of re-erection of the memorial (where an additional inscription is added). Cheques should be made payable to Northorpe Parish Council.  

Following the granting of the Permit, the monumental mason must give notice to the Clerk to the Council of their intention to erect the memorial at least three working days prior to the erection.  The memorial must be erected on the grave plot allocated (or between two grave plots where approved by the Council).
To attach the memorial to the foundation, the Council recognises that the memorial mason will need to utilise a power drill and hereby grants permission for such usage, subject to the mason ensuring that his installers are sensitive to the needs of other users of the cemetery at the time of installation.  

Tablets and vases will continue to be permitted in the new cemetery area and must be placed on the foundation within the designated area for the grave in question.  

3.4  Periodic Safety Inspections of Memorials  

Under its duty of care to ensure the safety of the cemetery for users, workers and visitors and as set out in section 3.1.3, the Council requires that all erected memorials are formally inspected for safety on an annual basis. The cost of the inspection is included in the fees set out in section 1.3.

The Council recognises that an unstable and thus potentially dangerous memorial is a very difficult issue for the owner to face and is aware that, on informing the owner of a problem, it may inadvertently upset the relatives of the deceased, especially in the case of a more recent bereavement. The Council will endeavour to deal with the matter as sensitively as it can and will offer advice and assistance where appropriate. The owner will be allowed a reasonable time to commission the necessary remedial work, having regard to the level of risk posed by the memorial. The inspection process is described in more detail below.  

A visual inspection only will be carried out on memorial vases and tablets. The inspection process for headstones will be carried out in accordance with the Ministry of Justice guidance note “Managing the safety of burial ground memorials”, January 2009. It will involve a visual check for obvious signs that a headstone is likely to be unstable, for example: 

• Damaged or eroding bonding. 
• Movement of parts of the memorial from its original position. 
• Undermined or unstable foundations. 
• (Where they exist) kerb stones breaking apart. 
• Leaning headstones, particularly where there is evidence of recent movement. 
• Evidence of structural damage or disturbance (e.g. cracks) 
• The presence of vegetation which may cause cracks to widen.  

Headstones over 500mm in height (and smaller ones in higher risk locations, if required) will then be subject to a simple hand test to determine their stability. This will be carried out by the inspector standing to one side of the memorial, placing one hand on the top of the stone and applying a firm, steady pressure in different directions to determine to what degree, if any, the headstone is loose. If some instability is detected a judgement will be made, in light of the risk assessment carried out, as to whether this movement is limited or whether it is sufficient to present a high risk to people’s health and safety. (Owners should note that the Council is aware that memorials installed in recent years that were fitted with a ground anchor support system may move within a designed tolerance limit and present no danger. Under its risk assessment, the Council would not regard such movement as presenting a high risk to safety).  

If the Council’s inspection and hand test suggests that some remedial work may be required but that the memorial does not represent a high risk to health and safety, the Council will write to the owner advising them that the memorial may be unstable and that they should undertake their own checks and take whatever remedial action is required. Owners will be given twelve weeks in which to respond, confirming what action has been carried out/planned. If the owner, following his/her inspection, decides to take no such action, the Council will write to them again confirming that, in taking no action, the owner has accepted full liability for the memorial in its current state. If the Council is unable to trace an address for the owner of any such memorial, it will place a notice on its cemetery notice board and on its website asking the owner to contact the Council to discuss the memorial.     

If, following the inspection and hand test, the monument is considered to be an immediate danger to cemetery visitors or workers, the Council must take whatever steps are necessary at the time of the inspection to eliminate that immediate risk. This may involve the attachment by the Council of a temporary support to the memorial (which can only be removed by the monumental mason employed by the owner to repair the memorial at the time that the repair is undertaken) or, if this is not possible, by carefully laying it down on the grave plot. The Council will then write to the owner advising them of the situation and, in accordance with the powers and procedures set out in Article 16(2) and Schedule 3 of the Local Authorities Cemetery Order 1977, give notice to the owner requiring them to repair or to remove the memorial. If, after the expiration of the notice period given by the Council (usually eight weeks but dependent upon the severity of the problem), the owner has failed to inform the Council of his/her intention to repair or to remove the memorial or if the Council has been unable to trace the owner after it has taken such reasonable steps as it may consider necessary for that purpose, the Council may terminate the Permit to Erect and Maintain a Memorial (where such a Permit exists) and reserves the right to take whatever action it regards as appropriate to make the cemetery safe and tidy.     
In both cases, the Council would obviously wish to contact the owner directly and, to facilitate this, the Council urges owners to keep the Council informed of any change to their address.    

3.5 Extending the Permit Period  

Following the expiration of the initial period of the Permit and if the owner so requests in writing, the Permit may be extended by the Council subject to a safety inspection of the memorial (as described in 3.4 above), the satisfactory repair of any defects found and any other necessary safeguards required by the Council being put into place. All aspects of this are at the owner’s cost. The fee for the Permit extension will be confirmed at the time of request.  

If an application to extend the Permit is not received from the owner by the expiration of the initial period, the Council reserves the right to require the memorial to be removed and, in the absence of the owner, reserves the right to organise its removal on their behalf.   

4 General  

The cemetery (and the adjacent designated overflow land) will be open for pedestrian access at all times, although the Council reserves the right to make such closures as may be necessary for repairs, emergencies or in the interests of public safety. The dignity and calm of the cemetery (and the adjacent designated overflow land) must be respected at all times. Dogs are prohibited and ball games are not permitted.  

The Council shall regularly maintain the cemetery gardens, driveway and paths, to include the removal of litter. The Council reserves the right to remove any dead floral tributes that are positioned such as to impede maintenance activities. 

Should sinkage occur on any grave, the Council will top this up free of charge.  

No trees, shrubs or flowers shall be planted in the cemetery (or in the adjacent designated overflow land) without the express permission of the Council. Where such permission is granted, the Council shall supervise the planting. The Council reserves the right to prune or remove any planted material if, in the opinion of the Council, it has become unsightly or overgrown.  

As stated in section 3.1.3, the Council (as owner and occupier of Northorpe Cemetery and the adjacent designated overflow land) has a duty under health and safety legislation to do all that is reasonably practical to protect the health and safety of persons who enter the site. To identify any potential hazards and risks, a monthly site inspection will be conducted and required action taken.  

The Council shall keep the statutory registers and records in relation to burials conducted at the cemetery. The registers and records are open for inspection, free of charge, by appointment with the Clerk to the Council.  

This policy is effective from 1st April 2016.   

Adopted April 2016