‘Our cemeteries are places for quiet contemplation’ - Batley Cemetery gates locked during school drop-off time to stop drivers using grounds as ‘rat run’
The gates of Batley Cemetery are now being locked during the morning school drop-off hours to discourage drivers from using the grounds as a thoroughfare.
The development follows concerns raised by the Batley Cemetery Support Group about the graveyard grounds - which has entrances on Cemetery Road and North Bank Road - being used as a “rat run”, particularly by drivers dropping children off at, and picking them up from, St Mary’s Catholic Primary School on nearby Upton Street.
Despite Kirklees Council signs already existing at the cemetery warning drivers that the graveyard is for visitors only, new signs have been placed at the cemetery informing people that the gates at the Cemetery Road entrance will now be “locked between dusk and 9.30am.”
The changes came into effect from Monday, October 7. The gate at North Bank Road will be open to cemetery visitors as usual.
Coun Carole Pattison, leader of Kirklees Council and cabinet member for culture, said:
“Bereavement Services have received reports that Batley Cemetery is being used as a shortcut by a small number of people, especially in the morning rush hour to drop off children at St. Mary’s School.
“Officers monitored the situation over a few weeks and saw vehicles entering from Cemetery Road, passing through the cemetery, and exiting onto North Bank Road.
“Working with local councillors, Safer Kirklees, and the Batley Cemetery Support Group, it was decided to delay the opening of the gate on Cemetery Road in the mornings.”
She added: “Our cemeteries are places for quiet contemplation, and to discourage the use of the cemetery as a thoroughfare the gate on Cemetery Road will now open around 9:15 am. The gate on North Bank Road and the cemetery car park will continue to be open as usual for visitors to the cemetery.
“These changes have been communicated with the school and signs have now been placed on the gates informing visitors of this change which come into effect from Monday, October 7.
“We will continue to monitor the situation and assess the impact of this change going forward.”
A spokesperson for the Batley Cemetery Support Group said: “We have tried locking the gates on previous occasions. We hope that parents will stop using the cemetery as a rat run.
“Will we all be under the ground in the cemetery ourselves before people learn to respect the grounds as a final resting place?”
St Mary’s Catholic Primary School has been approached for comment.