Purchasing a grave

When choosing a grave there are several options to consider.

You may:

Please note that the land remains the property of the council, you are simply purchasing the exclusive right to use that piece of land as a burial space.

How to purchase a new grave

Burial spaces can be purchased in advance of any burials being required. Although this is not necessary, many of us want to reserve a particular place for our loved ones, and possibly even be buried with them when the time comes.

This is called the exclusive right of burial.

Our Exclusive Right of Burial - deed holder rights and responsibilities leaflet [pdf] 13MB provides information on what can be expected when owning the rights to a grave in our cemeteries.

The exclusive right of burial is granted for a period of 30 years which if not extended, will automatically transfer back to us.

The maximum number per grave of exclusive right of burial owners is three.

We have 2 types of cemetery sections available:

Lawn

Modelled on graves found in Commonwealth War cemeteries the lawn section provides for a tidy, high quality, uniform landscape for both cremated and coffined remains.

Until the grave has settled (up to 12 months) we allow the grave-mound to be planted with annual bedding plants, however these must be removed to allow for the turfing or seeding of the grave space when needed.

Lawn section graves can typically have memorials erected immediately after burial.

Items not permitted in the lawn section
  • kerbsets, fences and/or gardens
  • stones/gravel/bark chip etc.
  • any glass vase or other fragile item
  • wind chimes, lights or any other mementoes which will infringe on the peaceful tranquillity of the cemetery
  • any other mementoes that will deteriorate over time (e.g. clothing and soft toys)
  • any tree or shrub
  • any item made of plastic
     

Any memorial or garden placed outside of the allocated area or which does not comply with the regulations may be removed without notice.

Traditional

The traditional section is a long-established key design in local authority cemeteries and churchyards. These sections can include a wide range of memorial types covering the entire grave space.

Typically memorial headstones can be erected immediately after burial, however the ground will need to settle before kerb sets can be installed.

Memorials or kerb sets which cover the entire grave shall be made of natural stone, concrete or other hardened material (subject to our approval). Timber or plastic memorials or kerb sets are not permitted.

Items not permitted in the traditional section
  • stones/gravel/bark chip etc. unless contained within a raised kerb set
  • any glass vase or other fragile item
  • wind chimes, lights or any other mementoes which will infringe on the peaceful tranquillity of the cemetery
  • any other mementoes that will deteriorate over time (e.g. clothing and soft toys)
  • any tree or shrub which exceeds 75cm in height
  • any item made of plastic
     

Any memorial or garden placed outside of the allocated area or which does not comply with the regulations may be removed without notice.