Burial of non-residents in the village churchyard
Clarifying when exceptions will be
made in future (Jan 2020)
The
churchyard is for the whole village, whether you come to church or not, and we
are very grateful for the volunteers who give their time and energy, and for
the Parish Council’s financial support, to maintain it.
The rights
to burial in the churchyard are governed by national law, to ensure that the
needs of villagers, past present and future, are preserved for as long as
possible. Currently, anyone who is resident in Chearsley when they die,
together with anyone on the electoral roll of the parish, has the right to be
buried (or have ashes interred) in the churchyard whilst it remains open.
In addition,
we currently make exceptions for “long-standing village families” who no longer
live in Chearsley but who have expressed a wish to be buried, or have their ashes
interred, here. We want to continue to do this, but it is proving difficult to do
so fairly, since there is no common understanding of what “long-standing
village family” actually means. This was addressed by the PCC on 19th
November 2019, when a more-objective definition was agreed.
In
future, exceptions will be made for non-residents who have requested a burial
or interment of ashes in the churchyard if the deceased:
1.
Lived in the
village for more than half of their life
OR
2.
Lived in village immediately
before moving into nursing care, or to a temporary address (eg. Hospital or
University)
OR
3. Has permission to be buried, or to have their ashes
interred, in an existing family grave in the churchyard
We hope this
will enable us to continue making exceptions for our long-standing villages on
a fair and consistent basis. If you have any questions or concerns about this
policy, please contact Rev Richard on 01844 208987 or reverend.richard.phillips@gmail.com.
God bless you and keep you, and give
you his peace.
