Newcastle City Council says it is taking a more sensitive approach to cemetery safety inspections as it prepares to carry out a fresh round of checks on headstones across the city.
The move comes after widespread criticism in 2023 when hundreds of memorials were laid flat following safety inspections, leaving many bereaved families upset when visiting the graves of loved ones.
More than 2,300 headstones were overturned between June 2023 and September 2024 after inspections found they were at risk of collapsing. The action affected cemeteries including Heaton, Jesmond and West Road and sparked accusations that the council had acted in a “crass and insensitive” manner.
At the time, the authority defended the decision, citing its responsibility to protect visitors from potentially dangerous memorials. Safety concerns around unstable headstones have remained a national issue since the death of an eight-year-old boy who was killed by a falling memorial in Glasgow in 2015.
The latest inspections will take place over the coming weeks at Elswick, Lemington, All Saints and Hollywood cemeteries.
This time, the council says it will seek to avoid laying headstones flat wherever possible. Instead, unstable memorials will be secured using wooden stakes and safety bands, with notices placed on affected graves asking plot owners or relatives to contact the council’s bereavement services team.
However, officials warned that laying a memorial down could still be necessary in cases where it is considered the safest option.
Cllr Peter Lovatt, Newcastle City Council’s cabinet member for neighbourhoods and local services, said the authority understood how distressing the previous inspections had been for families.
He said: “We know how important and personal the final resting place of a loved one is to people, and we’re keen to make sure residents can pay their respects safely across our cemeteries. In the past, seeing gravestones laid down in our city’s cemeteries has led to residents raising concerns and we understand it can be upsetting for families.”
Coun Lovatt said the council makes every effort to contact the next of kin before action is taken, although this can be difficult because some memorials are more than 100 years old. He added: “We have a duty of care to all visitors, as well as our colleagues who tend to these sites, and if such a tragedy took place in our cemeteries questions would be asked. That is why we are carrying out these important inspections and taking the necessary action should any headstones need to be repaired.”
The council has urged anyone responsible for a memorial in one of Newcastle’s cemeteries to ensure their contact details are up to date.
Residents can update information by calling 0191 211 6941 or emailing memorialsafety@newcastle.gov.uk.
The authority said all inspections would be carried out by trained staff and with “the greatest respect and sensitivity”.
