Covid: Funeral held at arena after Wotton-under-Edge church cancels

Ruth Rowe's funeral took place in Wotton-under-Edge on 15 January

A great-grandmother's funeral had to be moved after a church cancelled a service three and a half days before it was due to be held.

St Mary the Virgin in Wotton-under-Edge, Gloucestershire, offered Ruth Rowe's family a graveside ceremony but they declined.

A relative said it was "disrespectful" to notify the family so late.

The Diocese of Gloucester said the church closed because of coronavirus restrictions.

Mrs Rowe, who died aged 97 in December, had lived in Wotton-under-Edge for 73 years.

Sarah Smith said the church had given "no indication" that Mrs Rowe's funeral would be cancelled before 11 January

Her granddaughter, Sarah Smith, said the family was told on 11 January that the funeral inside the church, due to be held on 15 January, would be cancelled.

Prime minister Boris Johnson announced new coronavirus restrictions on 4 January.

Funerals can still be held indoors if they adhere to guidelines, such as having a maximum of 30 mourners, but individual churches have been allowed to make their own decisions whether to open for services.

Ms Smith said she arranged a "perfect" alternative ceremony within days at an equestrian arena near Wotton-under-Edge.

"[The church] gave us no indication that [the funeral] was going to be cancelled", she said.

"The funeral director even offered his staff to do some of the jobs that the church warden and verger would normally do if they felt they were at risk.

"But they said they couldn't because of safeguarding rules, which seems absurd."

She said: "For the church, who are meant to be sympathetic and supportive, it's just gone totally against what I thought it would be for us."

The Diocese of Gloucester said it was "sorry that changes happened in a very short time frame"

A Diocese of Gloucester spokesperson said it understood the "family's upset at the change of location" but that church staff were "committed to holding the funeral at the cemetery with the same care, compassion and dignity".

They said the combination of the national lockdown and the added threat of the new variant of Covid-19 had led to them carrying out a new risk assessment.

"In response to this risk assessment a number of very difficult decisions were made, which included closing the church building.

"These decisions were made for the safety of everyone in the community," the spokesperson said.

They added: "We respect the family's decision not to go ahead in the changed circumstances and we are sorry that the changes happened in a very short time frame.

"The Ministry Team has offered to hold a full thanksgiving service in the church as soon as it is safe to do so."