The Centre for Natural Burial

By Simon Bristow, Yorkshire Post

WORK will begin next week on a new cemetery that will offer East Ridingresidents “green” burials for the first time.

The £1.5m development off Priory Road in Cottingham, which was opposed by people living nearby, will cater for burials in biodegradable coffins, such as cardboard or willow, in a woodland setting. It is due to open next year.

As well as catering for traditional burials, there will be a range of other methods of laying people to rest specific to particular needs.

Biodegradable coffins will be buried with a non-biodegradable small plastic tube containing a microchip to allow each grave to be identified. This will record the name and age of the de ceased which can be checked against a grid reference identifying the plot as in traditional burials.

Hull Council said it was creating this aspect of the facility in response to requests from the public.

Head of environmental health Norma Cottis said: “A lot of people have been expressing an interest in this type of burial. Anecdotally, there must have been at least 50 inquiries from people wanting an environmentally-friendly burial.”

The cemetery will also offer “lawn burials” in which a discreet headstone is laid horizontally on the ground. Muslim burials will also be catered for, with plots mapped out to face Mecca, and an area for infant burials is also being built.

A controversial aspect of the cemetery is the fact that it is being built at all.

The land is owned by Hull Council but is within the boundary of the East Riding, and the project saw the two authorities in a rare display of public disagreement.

East Riding Council went against the advice of its officers when it refused to back Hull Council’s plans, and Hull’s appeal led to a public inquiry which found in its favour.

On Hull’s side, it said the need for a new cemetery serving the west of the city was vital as it had reached capacity at Northern Cemetery, in Chanterlands Avenue, and Western Cemetery, in Spring Bank.

Residents living near the site and some East Riding councillors were united in opposing the scheme, saying it would affect their quality of life and rob them of valuable open space and that it should be constructed within the Hull boundary.

Residents on both sides of the fence will be eligible for burial in the cemetery.

Given the background, the city
council was at pains to emphasise what it said would be the minimal impact on the area.

Announcing the start of the work, it said: “The cemetery has been sympathetically designed to complement the semi-rural setting, with wide belts of woodland boundary planting that will screen the cemetery and provide privacy and tranquillity to both visitors and people living in the vicinity.”

The council has also written to residents to inform them of the work schedule. It has also instructed all site vehicles to go through a “wheel wash” to reduce the amount of mud left on the road during construction.

Mrs Cottis said: “The council would like to offer their reassurance that the work being undertaken by the contractor will done with the greatest care and consideration.”

Burials will cost £423 for grave deeds plus £664 for a single coffin, although two coffins can be buried for a further £21.