Headstones at risk in topple test

Local authorities have been given recommendations by the Institute of Cemetery and Crematorium Management (ICCM) to use a 35kg weight to put force on gravestones and memorials to see how sturdy they are.

Any deemed unsafe should be propped up by temporary supports until grave tenders can be contacted or laid flat until repairs are carried out.

But the four Black Country boroughs – Dudley, Sandwell, Wolverhampton and Walsall – have opted to use a lesser weight of 25kg to test memorials despite warnings they could be held liable if one deemed safe later topples.

Officers claim the recommended weight for the tests could cause headstones which are perfectly safe to become unstable.

The need for measures to be taken by all councils was underlined by the Health and Safety Executive after the death of a child in a Harrogate cemetery in 2000.

Dudley Council cabinet member Councillor Charles Fraser Macnamara said the idea behind the policy was to quickly identify the memorials posing the greatest risk.

He said: "The recommended industry 35kg test is likely to identify in excess of 50 per cent of lawn headstones as unsafe. This is something officers believe to be incorrect, thus increasing the scale of the problem and its impact on the families of the bereaved and the council alike."

Councillor Macnamara said the ICCM had advised against the Black Country policy and warned authorities they could be liable if a stone that passed the 25kg test later toppled.

But he added: "The authority has in excess of 20,000 memorials to inspect. Officers believe the recommended policy will enable safety work to be carried out within a reasonable timescale."

It is expected the policy will be rubber stamped at a meeting on Monday.