Mid and East Antrim Borough Council to 'review' policies on cemeteries
It comes after concerns were raised over a regulation requiring the removal of festive tributes and wreaths from graves in cemeteries managed by the local authority.
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Hide AdA notice posted in January at Islandmagee Cemetery reminded visitors to remove all Christmas tributes by the end of the month.
“If such items have not been cleared by this time, council staff will be instructed to remove all such items from the cemetery graves,” the notice read.
The reminder sparked confusion among local residents, with many taking to social media to voice their thoughts on the issue.
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Hide AdSeveral stated they were unaware of the policy and queried whether the rules had recently changed, while others suggested the removal of tributes by council staff was ‘unfair’ and ‘upsetting’ for the families of the deceased.
Larne Lough Alliance Party Councillor, Danny Donnelly stated that he had been contacted by a number of residents over the regulation. “This rule has been in place since at least 2017; I have discussed it with officers after seeing posts on Facebook and hearing from a few people unhappy with this situation,” he said.
“It’s clear that this ruling only refers to Christmas wreaths.
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Hide Ad"The council has a responsibility to keep cemeteries tidy and respectful of families who visit them to see the graves of their loved ones.”
Cllr Donnelly added that he had requested that the issue be added to the agenda for the next meeting of the council’s Direct Services Committee on February 15.
Coast Road DUP Councillor, Andrew Clarke said he was "pleased" to see that the council had since suspended the policy. "Good to see this will now be part of a wider review into grave management," a post on Cllr Clarke's Facebook page read.
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Hide Ad"It is important that council deal sensitively and sensibly with grieving relatives."
Commenting on the matter, a spokesperson for Mid and East Antrim Borough Council said: "As an interim measure, the council have agreed to only remove damaged or wilted wreaths from graves, where identified, in council-run cemeteries.
"This will allow officers to carry out a review of the cemeteries policies.”