Graves to be re-used for burials (General)

by joss, Tuesday, June 05, 2007, 13:58 (6383 days ago)

Just came across this on the BBC website http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/6722481.stm

Briefly, it says - "Graves filled at least 100 years ago can be re-used under government plans to ease pressure on cemeteries.
Ministers say all designated burial space in England and Wales will be full in 30 years, unless changes are made.
In a technique called "lift and deepen" old graves will be deepened with room for up to six new coffins to be placed on top of the older remains.
Families could refuse permission for their ancestors' graves to be re-used for "at least another generation".
But once the deeper graves have been used once there will be no time contraints on when subsequent bodies are buried in them.
It will be left to the local authorities who look after graveyards to contact relatives of those who are buried - a job which may be thwarted by illegible weathered gravestones from more than 100 years ago.
It would also be up to them as to what they did with the old gravestones, a Ministry of Justice spokeswoman said. "

Seems to me that this would be a major problem for genealogists, so we need to keep an eye on it.

Joss