Action call on shrinking number of cemetery spots

The creation of a new cemetery in Wakefield should be made a priority as the city's main one is expected to become full within seven years, a councillor has said.

Nadeem Ahmed, leader of the opposition Conservative and Independent Group, said people in the city had become "deeply concerned about the future availability of plots".

A recent council report found Wakefield Cemetery, known as Sugar Lane Cemetery, was expected to become full before 2032.

Ahmed has put forward a motion ahead of a full council meeting later, which urged officers to "fully engage with all stakeholders with an interest in the Sugar Lane site".

The motion also called for nearby landowners, allotment holders, religious groups and residents to be consulted before a final decision is made on a new site.

The councillor said allotments next to the cemetery, which dates back to 1859, should be "given priority in all negotiations for new burial provision".

The cemetery, at Belle Vue, is within Ahmed's Wakefield South ward.

The motion stated: "Sugar Lane Cemetery at Belle Vue is one of Wakefield's oldest and most historically significant burial grounds.

"It has served generations of local families and remains a site of deep personal and cultural importance.

"A lack of available space within Wakefield would force families to travel long distances for burials which could be both financially and emotionally burdensome.

"Residents are deeply concerned about the future availability of plots, particularly for those whose religious beliefs require burial rather than cremation.

"Every effort must be made to ensure that Wakefield's burial traditions and cultural needs continue to be met for generations to come and that preserve the dignity of those who pass away in the future".

Councillors are due consider the motion at a meeting later, the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) said.

A finance report, published last month, estimated the cost of the work at a potential new site, which was not identified in the document, to be around £100,000.

The council has extended cemeteries or explored other potential sites in order to provide new burial plots across the district in recent years.

In January 2023, work began to create 1,000 plots by extending Hemsworth Cemetery.

The council said at the time that the £500,000 project would allow families to lay loved ones to rest in the town for decades to come.

The work saw 1,175 plots formed on 3.4 acres (1.4 hectares) of land bordering the town's existing cemetery.

In the same year, surveys and drilling were carried at Barracks Field, in Pontefract, to test if it was suitable to be turned into a cemetery.

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