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A Parish Council is not under any obligation to provide a cemetery, although they are usually a good source of revenue if managed well. If they have decided not to continue, they must have their reasons, which should be included in the minutes of the appropriate meeting. If not, ask for an explanation.
by (57.9k points)
Dave - I am very interested in your comment that a cemetery is a good source of revenue, if well managed. Please do you have a link advising How to manage a cemetery well?
If I could charge people £1,000 to dig a hole in my garden, I'd be laughing all the way to the bank!

A traditional cemetery is the least profitable, as it requires enhanced expenditure on grounds maintenance which can impact upon the profitability, as this will often entail the use of strimmers etc. which are more costly.

These days the trend is to go for lawn cemeteries, which can be mown with a tractor or push mower. Ban all the elaborate memorial stonework and allow only a single vertical headstone. Some have concrete plinths, others just individual stones. Look at pictures of the Commonwealth War Graves cemeteries.

Green burial grounds are even better. Collect the fees then watch the weeds grow! Strim twice each year.

Check the fees charged by your local churches and municipal cemeteries and all the extras that are usually added. The fees are extortionate and far exceed the costs. My District Council charges £1k for right of burial, a further £1,250 for Interment, plus £250 for a single headstone in a lawn cemetery. That's only the right to have a stone, not the cost of supplying one! In a traditional cemetery these charges exceed £3k. For non-residents they double all fees.

And finally, just when you think you've squeezed every last penny out of the family of the deceased, the old 99-year rule on grave leases is now commonly reduced to as little as 25 or 30 years, so you can send them another bill or remove the headstone in readiness to re-use the plot.

Like taxes, death is inevitable, so you'll never run out of paying guests!

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