Community volunteers accused of being “disrespectful” by setting up a project at St Ninians graveyard have told councillors that years of extensive dog fouling on the site was far worse.
Stirling Council’s planning and regulation panel has now approved a plan to partially change the use of a former burial ground to a memorial garden.
Stirling 4 Community (S4C) charitable community group’s application for a partial change of use of the graveyard to a memorial garden behind St Ninians Old Parish Church in Kirk Wynd also included repairs to gatepost and fencing and erection of storage.
The site was a cemetery for past residents of the old William Simpsons Asylum, established in 1836.
S4C announced last year they had joined forces with Plean-based William Simpsons Care Home for the special project to mark the designated interment area to honour those buried there.
However, a number of elders and members of the St Ninians Old Parish Church congregation were among 17 people who objected to the application, along with the church’s minister, the Rev Gary McIntyre.
The project also involves installing a memorial notice board, a small timber shed and two sets of raised beds and planters.
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At a panel hearing last week, Jane Steel spoke of behalf of the applicants.
She described the state of the site before their involvement as “an eyesore, with brambles and dog dirt over the entire area and the gate hanging off its hinges” and that they had managed to “significantly improve that”.
She added: “We seek to change what is a very much unloved area of land and former graveyard.”
She said 75 men from William Simpson were buried there, in largely unmarked plots.
“The church have said it would be disrespectful,” added Ms Steel, “but these graves were unmarked and used as a dog walking area and defecated on by dogs which is more disrespectful, I would say.”
She outlined the importance of the project’s men’s group, adding: “Poor mental health in men is very prevalent. Men in paricular perhaps don’t often get out of their house. We have men from 30 to 80 years old coming along on Saturdays to work on this land and feel it’s a great opportunity for men to come talk and get exercise, in an area for friendship and taking time to spend talking with other men.”
Asked by Councillor Rachel Nunn if archaeological conditions on the planning consent would make the project difficult to deliver, Ms Steel said there was “no intention to dig into the ground at any point, everything is on the surface so there is nothing we are going to do which will be detrimental to the site”.
Councillor Douglas Dodds, who moved to refuse the application but failed to find a seconder, said: “This is consecrated ground, it’s a burial ground and shouldn’t be disturbed. This is ground which is sacred and considered suitable for Christian burial. It should be left as it is.”
However, planning and building standards manager Christina Cox said: “I respect the sensitivities that Councillor Dodds is articulating, however in considering a planning application have to consider it under the plannimg merits of the application and the reasons set out are not valid planning reasons.”
Panel chair Councillor Neil Benny, who had moved to approve the application, said correspondence with councillors suggested there was now more “general consensus” from the community about the plans and he wished the project “good luck”.
