Opening date for Newport cemetery extension
Work is nearing completion on an extension of the cemetery in Newport. The new extension will officially open on June 10.
As part of the development there is a new memorial wall at the cemetery in Audley Avenue and Newport Town Council is offering people memorial plaques, for a fee, which will be displayed for 10 years.
The new extension will be the first time that the town has had a memorial wall and will also have an area where families can scatter the ashes of loved ones.
Louise Tunks, cemetery and amenities officer, said that work on the cemetery is now practically complete.
She said: "It is pretty much all done, there are just a few little bits to go on.
"We've ordered an oak tree for the scattering area and a stone boulder is also being engraved.
"It is just the last few little bits and finishing touches, we need to do a bit more weeding before we officially open."
For the official opening of the cemetery, a short reception will be held in the cemetery before Newport's mayor Councillor Lyn Fowler says a few words and a ribbon is cut.
The new development is costing the council several thousand pounds and will help provide burial space in the town for the next 100 years. A patch of land measuring 6.09 acres off Pave Lane, near Chetwynd Aston, has been chosen for the new site.
Plans for the new cemetery were put in last month and were approved by Telford & Wrekin Council.
Work has progressed quickly on the site ahead of the grand opening. The town council worked with Harrison Design Development to put the plans together, as well as working with the Environment Agency to carry out tests on the land.
Initially the council had hoped to find sites within the town but no appropriate plot was put forward. Lee Jakeman, town clerk, said: "We are mindful that the current cemetery may not last till the next generation and we are making early plans to ensure burial provisions for future generations. In 1859 someone brought the land on Audley Avenue in the town, and that has lasted us for many years.
"Now we are thinking ahead and doing what our forefathers did, by ensuring there is enough land supply for burials for the next 100 years or so."
