Fury after ‘disrespectful’ council sticks yellow ‘unsafe memorial’ tags on dozens of gravestones after inspecting the village churchyard – as bereaved residents blast officials for ‘blatant misuse of health and safety policies’

• Bright yellow tags appeared on 37 headstones at St Clement’s Church, Norfolk
• West Norfolk Borough Council say 900 of 8,000 memorials in area are ‘unsafe’ 

Furious villagers have blasted a ‘disrespectful’ council for sticking yellow ‘unsafe memorial’ tags on dozens of gravestones in a picturesque churchyard.

The bright yellow warning tags have been wrapped around 37 headstones, some of them brand new, at St Clement’s Church in the pretty Terrington St Clement, in Norfolk. 

Pictures show scores of gravestones with tags attached to a piece of rope wrapped around the headstone with bold black writing that reads: ‘WARNING. Unsafe Memorial. Please do not attempt to remove this label. Please call the cemetery office for further information.’ 

Angry villagers have laid into King’s Lynn and West Norfolk Borough Council saying it is health and safety ‘gone mad’.

West Norfolk Borough Council inspected five cemeteries and found 900 of 8,000 memorials ‘needed attention’ to make them safe.  

Angry villagers have laid into King’s Lynn and West Norfolk Borough Council saying it is health and safety ‘gone mad’

The bright yellow warning tags have been wrapped around 37 headstones, some of them brand new, at St Clement’s Church in the pretty Terrington St Clement, in Norfolk

Pictures show scores of gravestones with tags attached to a piece of rope wrapped around the headstone with bold black writing

Many locals were shocked to see the yellow tags on their loved ones’ gravestones, many of which aren’t even wobbly, with one only being erected last year.

The notices ask relatives to get in touch with the council, who say they have a duty of care to keep the graveyard safe.

Local resident Michael Lister wrote on Facebook: ‘Many people may not be aware that since the Parish Church churchyard was closed to future burials the responsibility of its maintenance has been transferred to the Borough Council.

‘This morning whilst visiting there I noticed that with its “duty of care” to the public it has recently visited and inspected the headstones.

‘A great number of them, mainly on the south side of the church now have notices attached to them advising that they are unstable and must not be touched.

‘This is the first step before they return at a later date and lay the headstones flat. Visually to me it appeared that, whilst some were indeed unstable, some appeared to be just sinking to one side.

‘Most are not “historic” stones and must have relatives still living locally and I wonder if many of them know of this current situation.’

Hank Pooley replied: ‘When has anyone been injured or seriously injured by a falling headstone?’ 

Many locals were shocked to see the yellow tags on their loved ones’ gravestones, many of which aren’t even wobbly

The notices ask relatives to get in touch with the council, who say they have a duty of care to keep the graveyard safe

‘I haven’t heard of anyone injuring themselves because of these headstones’: Locals say the tags are ‘disrespectful’ and say they are not unsafe 

The bright yellow tags warn people the memorial is unsafe and ask them to contact the cemetery office for further information 

An aerial view of St Clement’s Church with scores of headstones in the churchyard. The borough council has inspected five cemeteries in the area and found 900 of 8,000 memorials’needed attention

Ashley Bareford said it was ‘disrespectful’ and wrote: ‘They are not unsafe. I haven’t heard of anyone injuring themselves because of these headstones. It’s just a load of crap. The council doesn’t need to change anything.’

Tom Crossman-Kellie wrote: ‘Who seriously sat down with the H&S team stifling a laugh when they said ‘these leaning stones are a risk – someone could die if they fall at the wrong time. C’mon this is blatant misuse of H&S policies and guidance.’

Another local, who did not want to be named, added: ‘It’s health and safety gone mad. Many of the gravestones aren’t even wobbly. It seems completely over-the-top.’

Earlier this year the a spokesperson for the council said: ‘The graves and memorials within cemeteries are purchased by individuals – usually family members of deceased persons – and they retain ownership of these.

‘This means that if remedial work is required to make a memorial safe, it is up to the owner to carry it out, although we will provide help and advice with this process.

‘West Norfolk Council conducted inspections in five cemeteries in the borough in May.

‘In advance of doing this, a press release was issued and notices were put up in the cemeteries being inspected.

‘Out of more than 8,000 memorials tested, just over 900 have been identified as needing attention.

‘Where it is considered that a memorial needs remedial work to make it safe, we do our best to contact the owner of the grave.

‘This is not always straightforward. Most people who move house would not consider making the council aware of this fact for the purposes of grave ownership, and sometimes – especially with older graves – owners can be difficult to trace.

‘As a result, contacting owners can be a time-consuming and complex process.

‘In the meantime, we have put labels on the relevant graves while we make efforts to contact people.’

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