Council U-turn on grave planting hailed victory

Viv Thistlethwaite said her late husband would have been "mortified" if she could no longer garden at his grave

People can continue to plant flowers on the graves of their loved ones after a council did a U-turn on its "lawn only" policy.

Earlier this year Haddenham Parish Council, in Cambridgeshire, said people would have until next spring to remove plants to promote a "uniform and dignified appearance for all graves".

The council now said it had "rescinded the previous motion" and "existing planted graves may retain planting... provided they were well-maintained".

Some of those affected had said they would defy the ban and continue to plant at the gravesides - but have hailed the new decision "a victory".

Viv Thistlethwaite, 74, was one of those who protested the initial "lawn only" policy put forward by the parish council, which said its decision was in line with many other councils.

The policy would mean graves needed to be kept as flat, grass-covered plots with no planted flowers, although cut flowers on headstones would still be allowed and encouraged.

Mrs Thistlethwaite brings a lawn mower in a wheelbarrow once a week to tend graves

Mrs Thistlethwaite's husband, Leslie, died in 2021 and she plants and tends to his grave and others belonging to relatives.

"He loved flowers and he would have been proud of the way I'm doing it," she said.

She said the council had apologised to her after the initial ruling was publicised.

"They've reversed the decision," she said.

Mrs Thistlethwaite said she agreed with the council's decision to monitor unruly grave areas.

"But the rest of us will keep our flowers and keep it tidy - as it is at the moment.

"I was so pleased - it was a victory, I must admit."

She added: "This afternoon I will go over [to his grave] with my lawnmower, and I'll cut around the edges and I will tell him everything that's gone on."

Darren Miles, another resident, said: "Initially, we were unsure if the original decision would be reversed, but thankfully we were all delighted when there was a show of hands by the councillors to reverse the motion and create a new one, saying the current grave plots will be left as they are, but must be maintained, and any new burials will [be] grass only going forward.

"[We] returned to the cemetery to water the flowers on the graves and to tell [my partner's] parents, grandparents and uncle, that we won the day - and you're not going to be grassed over."

In a statement released to the BBC, the council said: "I can confirm the council did rescind the previous motion and replace it with an amended motion."

It said existing planted graves could be retained if kept tidy and weed-free, mowed, and edged.

Failure to do so would result in a warning and a formal warning three months later, after which the grave would be "transitioned to lawn-only".

The lawn-only ruling would apply to all new graves, it said.