Grave problem for Whittington cemetery

A village near Oswestry will run out of burial space if a land for a new cemetery is not found soon.

Whittington has just three empty plots left in its cemetery in Daisy Lane with plans for a potential new burial ground in the village currently held up because of complications.

The rector, Reverend David North, says he is concerned about the situation.

"It is not the responsibility of the church to provide a burial ground. It is the responsibility of the parish council," he said.

"I wrote to the parish council 10 years ago pointing out that the cemetery was filling up and that there could be a problem in the future."

Councillor Steve Charmley said he hoped that a new cemetery could be provided soon. He said Whittington Parish Council had applied for planning permission to create a cemetery off Station Road. He added: "There is a current objection from the Environment Agency because the land is near a water source and it has worries about possible pollution."

"We have withdrawn the application and are now in discussions with the Environment Agency and are looking to submit an application for a smaller amount of burial plots on the site."

Councillor Charmley said there were on average six or seven burials in Whittington each year.