A Paisley woman has slammed the council for its ‘disrespectful’ cemetery works which has resulted in hundreds of headstones being removed without notifying loved ones.
Yvonne Goldie says she was shocked when she visited her grandparents' grave in Hawkhead Cemetery on Mother's Day to find the headstone had been removed and laid flat on the ground without her knowledge.
A sign had been left in its place saying the headstone was considered a ‘hazard’ and had to be removed for safety reasons - with signs posted in hundreds of graves.
Renfrewshire Council is currently carrying out inspections across all nine cemeteries in Renfrewshire, which could potentially see thousands being removed without first telling families of the loved ones buried there.
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Some of the headstones at Hawkhead have been laid face down, meaning inscriptions on the headstones are no longer visible.
However, while Yvonne says she understands the council’s reasons for the removal, she says she should have been informed the headstone would be removed.
She has criticised the council for not making an effort to contact her or publicly advertise in the local press or social media to let people know what was happening.
Instead, small signs were erected within the cemetery, which Yvonne said could be easily missed.
Yvonne, who said she promised her dad she would look after his parents graves before he died, said: “I just think the way they have gone about it is really disrespectful.
“I had no idea this was happening at all so when I went up to visit and saw the grave lying flat with the sign in the grass in front of it, it was really upsetting.
“I was not the lair holder of the plot, that was my grandfather, so that’s why I wasn’t contacted.
“But I feel like the council should be doing more than what they have done to let people know what they are doing.
"Even an advert in the paper or a post on social media asking people to get in touch with them.
“There are a significant number which have the white plaques and I’m sure there will be more than a few of them like me who haven’t been contacted or even know that this is happening at all.”
Yvonne’s grandparents headstone was first installed in 1956 when her grandmother died.
She has now had to pay out of her own pocket to have the headstone reinstalled and says she feels awful for people who may not be able to afford it.
There is no support available for people who may need financial assistance to repair the headstones, with Renfrewshire Council confirming it is the responsibility of the lair holder.
Yvonne added: “It was my dad's parents' grave and he asked me before he died to make sure it was looked after so I had to get it fixed.
“But it’s terrible for anyone who can’t afford it and it would be upsetting to come to the cemetery and see the headstone like that every time.”
Renfrewshire Council said the headstones were removed as they did not comply with Scottish Government safety legislation which was implemented in 2019 following the death of an eight-year-old boy in Glasgow in 2017 who was killed when an unstable headstone fell on him.
A council spokesman said: “We are sorry to hear of the individual’s concerns and are committed to providing a safe and welcoming environment for visitors and our staff in Renfrewshire cemeteries and churchyards, with all work carried out as respectfully as possible.
“The Scottish Government published guidance in 2019 to ensure memorial safety following the tragic death of a child in a Scottish cemetery and following this, we introduced a policy for inspection of memorial monuments and headstones.
“It is unfortunately not possible to reach lair owners in advance of an inspection and whilst memorials remain the responsibility of the lair owner, to ensure safety, any memorial found to be in a dangerous or unsafe condition is immediately laid flat on the lair, with marker notices and signage at each cemetery providing lair holders with information to contact us for details on how to ensure their memorial meets the safety standards.
“We also encourage lair holders to contact cemetery staff with details of any change of address or phone number, or to transfer ownership, to ensure our records are as up-to-date as possible.”
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