Cemeteries

Question

Can I reserve a grave in any Cemetery managed by St Neots Town Council?

Answer 1

It is not possible to reserve a grave in any St Neots Town Council owned Cemetery. Graves are only available to purchase at the point of arranging a burial. This protects the availability of burial space for our customers at the point of need. Grave reservation ceased in 2024.

Answer 2

When purchasing a grave at the time of arranging the burial, you can request to have the grave excavated for a depth of more than one burial. This ensures that you can be buried together. This request needs to be declared on the application for interment prior to the first burial taking place. Depending on the cemetery, graves can be prepared for a depth of two full coffin burials. Each burial will be covered with a minimum of 6-inch-deep layer of soil between each coffin, so when the grave is reopened for the next burial, the previous burial remains completely undisturbed. The applicant for interment stated on the interment form will be the owner of the Exclusive Right of Burial, giving that person the authority to decide who can be buried in that grave. The owner also gains an automatic right the be buried in that grave when the time comes (subject to space).

Answer 3

Yes. Please declare prior to the burial taking place that the grave lease will have more than one owner, as fees are determined by both residency status and the depth the grave is prepared for. All joint owners will share the rights equally and must all complete an application form before any burial or memorial work can be carried out. People who wish to be buried in the same grave should be joint owners. The Council recommend a maximum of two owners.

Answer 4

No. You buy the ‘Exclusive Right of Burial’ for the grave, which means that you lease the grave space and are granted the right to bury a person of your choice in the grave for the duration of the lease. The grave itself and all the grounds of the cemetery remains under the ownership of the Local Authority. Lease periods are for 100 years from the time of purchase.

Answer 5

At present, you may extend the lease on a burial plot for a further 10, 20, 30 or 40 years for the fee applicable at that time. The extension can be requested when you are within the final ten years of the existing lease.

Answer 6

No, there is a legal process to follow when the owner of the grave lease dies. Please contact us and we can advise you of the transfer process. Fees apply.

Answer 7

No. The owner of the ‘Exclusive Right of Burial’ of a plot has automatic right of burial (subject to space). Therefore, no transfer of ownership is required for owner burial. However, if any new or amendments to an existing memorial is to take place, or any further burials or burials of cremated remains, then a transfer will be required, as only a living registered owner can apply for a memorial or any subsequent works.

Answer 8

Depending on the ground conditions, it is recommended that a headstone is not placed on the grave for at least 6 months following a burial. Please note it can take 6 – 12 months for the ground to settle sufficiently. Memorials in St Neots Lawn Cemetery can be installed following a burial as memorials are installed directly onto a concrete base located at the head of the graves.

Answer 9

Only the legally registered owner/s of the ‘Exclusive Right of Burial’ can commission any memorial work to be carried out on a plot. Please contact a Memorial Mason for any memorial works required. Memorials masons must be registered with NAMM or BRAMM. Memorial applications must be submitted by a registered Memorial Mason and the memorial can only be installed when the approved permit has been issued by the Town Council Offices and upon receipt of the appropriate fee.

Answer 10

Whilst the burial authority (St Neots Town Council) is responsible for maintaining the overall safety of the cemetery, the registered owner of the Exclusive Right of Burial is responsible for the memorial, and for ensuring that the memorial is well-maintained and is structurally safe.

If a memorial owner fails to ensure their memorial is structurally safe, the St Neots Town Council may instruct a Memorial Mason to take action to make the memorial safe. If a memorial is identified as being unstable and poses a risk of falling and injuring someone, it might be cordoned off, laid flat or otherwise made safe with a temporary support. A sign will be placed on the grave for the attention of the grave owner to contact the Council Offices and take action.

When a memorial poses a danger, the Council will attempt to contact the registered grave owner with the contact details held on record. It is the grave owner’s responsibility to arrange a suitable repair. For further information please ‘Contact Us‘.

The Council will not be responsible for any damage to memorials or gravestones by storm, wind, lightening, subsidence, vandalism or acts of a third party. The memorial owner is strongly advised to check the warranty provided by their memorial mason at the time of purchase and it is always advised to insure a memorial against accidental damage and vandalism.

Answer 11

As well as being a place of peace and reflection, Cemeteries are also public spaces and working sites, so it is important that standards are in place to ensure the safety of visitors and staff, and to ensure that any memorial item is appropriate, dignified and in keeping with the Cemetery environment. For further information, please refer to the Cemetery Regulations on our website.

Answer 12

Traditional Graves – Traditional graves are graves where a headstone and kerb set is permitted. Maximum memorial dimensions and material and installation regulations apply.

Lawn Graves – Lawn graves can only have a headstone or similar. Full memorials are not permitted on Lawn graves. Maximum memorial dimensions and material and installation regulations apply.

Cremation plots – Cremation plots in St Neots Lawn Cemetery can only have flat tablet memorials. These can have an integrated vase. Cremation plots in our other cemeteries can have a headstone memorial. Maximum memorial dimensions and material and installation regulations apply.

Answer 13

Graves are allocated by the St Neots Town Council and are not available for selection.

Answer 14

There are two main costs involved with organising a burial in a new plot:

First is the ‘Exclusive Right of Burial’ for the plot and that fee is based on the residency of living owner. The Council retains ownership of all land within the cemetery, but as the registered owner of the ‘Exclusive Right of Burial’, you have the automatic right to be buried in the grave and can arrange for others to be buried in the grave (space permitting).

The second fee is for the interment of the deceased in the grave. This fee depends on the residency status of the deceased as well as the depth required for interment.

In addition, there are other potential fees that may be chargeable, such as witness of cremated remains fees. Please see the full list of Cemetery Fees.

Answer 15

A burial of a body must be arranged through a Funeral Director.

A burial of cremated remains can be arranged directly with the St Neots Town Council or through a Funeral Director if preferred. Only the registered grave owner can make the application, except for when it is the grave owner who’s cremated remains are to be buried.

We require:

For the applicant or the Funeral Director to contact us to agree the time and date for the burial of cremated remains

A completed Notice of Interment

The Certificate of Cremated Remains (this is issued by the Crematorium along with the Cremated Remains).

All paperwork and payment must be submitted at least 5 working days prior to the burial.

On the day, please bring the Cremated Remains with you. The grounds team will lay the cremated remains to rest in the prepared grave opening if no Funeral Director is present or if preferred you can do this part yourself. Once those attending are ready to leave, the grounds team will backfill the grave.

Answer 16

The Council do not permit the scattering of ashes in any of our cemeteries.

Answer 17

A consecrated grave has been blessed by a Bishop of the Church of England.

Unconsecrated plots have not been blessed by any religion and are available in St Neots Lawn Cemetery.

Answer 18

For 12 months from the date of burial, the St Neots Town Council will top up the grave to ground level.

To request a soil top up of graves, please contact us.

Answer 19

If a burial is taking place in a grave close by, it may be necessary for operational and safety reasons to remove memorials or other items from a neighbouring grave and cover that grave. If this action is necessary, a notice will be placed on the affected grave by our Operations Team to advise grave owners of their actions and to reassure that the grave will be reinstated to its usual condition once the burial has taken place. Please note that due to the short time frame surrounding many burials, we do not contact grave owners to give them prior notice.

Answer 20

The Council has the right to remove items from graves which have perished; pose a hazard; encroach on an adjacent grave space; or have not been authorised and dispose of such items without prior reference to the Deed Holder. This includes flowers, wreaths, weeds, plants, balloons, rubbish, fencing, border edging, glass objects, other decorations and unauthorised items placed on a grave. For further information, please refer to the Cemetery Regulations

Answer 21

All operational work in the Cemeteries, including site maintenance, is carried out and managed by St Neots Town Council Operations Team. If you wish to report a maintenance issue in a Cemetery, please contact us.

Cemeteries

About Our Cemeteries

Help for the Newly Bereaved

Cemetery Information

Eaton Socon

Eynesbury New

St Neots Old

St Neots New

St Neots Lawn

Eynesbury Old

Forget-Me-Not Garden

Further Support

Cemetery Enquiries

Frequently Asked Questions