The controversial dismantling of old headstones will continue at Sanquhar Cemetery after special planning consent was granted last week.
Dumfries and Galloway Council’s planning committee approved listed building consent, which allows for alterations to be made to headstones at the B-listed cemetery as part of a region-wide memorial safety programme.
This special planning permission is ‘partially retrospective’ – because nearly 200 of the Sanquhar headstones have already been dismantled and ‘socketed’ into the ground between 2019 and 2020 without relatives being properly notified.
The matter caused huge controversy when relatives turned up at various cemeteries to find headstones of loved ones ‘socketed’ into the earth to make them safe.
Penpont man David Dryfe took legal action after being hit with a £2,000 estimate to repair and properly reinstate four headstones at Sanquhar Cemetery.
David Suttie, the council’s planning and building standards manager, gave a presentation on the matter at last week’s planning committee and shared before and after pictures of a headstone being socketed.
This clearly resulted in around one third of the memorial being driven into the earth below, concealing some of the memorial’s inscription.
He said: “Obviously there are some sensitivities here about loss of names and so on. Each of these is being recorded as they go along.
“Certainly, in my view, there is an issue about where you go to a graveyard and stones are leaning, or are on the ground broken.
“It really doesn’t give a very good appearance so I think overall the idea of carrying out these works to make it safe and secure is going to have a preferable effect to the character of the listed building.
“There’s a lot of background as to why this is being done and the communications – or lack of.
“That’s something the communities committee has been looking at, but in terms of the listed building consent we’re satisfied that it’s an acceptable degree of alterations.”
Nith Councillor David Slater shared concerns about the socketing method of making headstones safe.
He said: “Many people have been extremely upset about this. It’s obviously gone ahead with some of the people not knowing anything about it until they visit the graveyard.”
He added: “To me, and many other people, it’s disrespectful.”
Councillors sitting on the planning committee approved the listed building consent at Sanquhar Cemetery, which means that the memorial safety programme will be completed there before the end of 2022.
A report tabled at the meeting states that 31 cemeteries, including Sanquhar, were found to be of a “very high risk to local communities” and that these safety works are essential.
