Grass finally cut at overgrown Dewsbury cemetery after complaints
A Dewsbury that was cemetery so overgrown that graves were no longer visible has finally been cut back.
St John the Evangelist Church at Boothroyd Lane, Dewsbury Moor – which dates back to 1818 - made headlines with grass reaching waist height due to a lack of maintenance.
As the cemetery is closed, Kirklees Council is responsible for keeping on top of it, though Associate Priest, Rev Neil Walpole, feared that the local authority had ‘abandoned’ the site.
He said: “Kirklees Council need to understand the distress that this causes to those who are still mourning their loved ones and who come week in week out to tend to their loved ones’ graves.
"To them it is not just the graveyard that has been abandoned, but mums, dads, children, aunts and uncles, many of whom had contributed greatly to the community when alive.”
Ward councillors Tanisha Bramwell and Ammar Anwar had also spoken out against the council’s lack of action and were rallying the community together to organise a clean up to “restore the dignity” of the site.
But the council has since stepped in.
At a full council meeting, Coun Bramwell spoke of the churchyard’s “ongoing maintenance issues” and said: “I’ve had residents crying out for help.
“The response from the council initially to the church group was because it had become so overgrown, you couldn’t cut it anymore because it’s a risk for your workers.
"You couldn’t get to the graves. However, this morning, you have. You’ve got down and you’ve managed to cut but there is no agreement to maintain despite the council stating to the press that they know they are responsible for it.”
The councillor asked for a commitment from the council to the regular maintenance of the site.
Cabinet member for Communities and Environment, Coun Amanda Pinnock apologised for the length of time it had taken for the site to be tidied up and said there will be “regular maintenance” going forward.
She explained that a review is currently underway, taking into account all closed churchyards, to ensure that the work is done and public safety is put first.