Bradfield St.Nicholas graveyard is an "open" graveyard, although certain areas are closed to new burials and memorials.
Regular graveyard tidy up sessions are held during the spring and summer months. If you would like to volunteer to help with this, please contact John Barrand (Churchwarden), who will be able to let you know when they are next meeting.
We have been working closely with Sheffield Lakeland Landscape Partnership to improve some of the damaged dry stone walls, as well as carrying out a habitat survey. We hope to be able to carry out a full mapping of the graveyard in the near future when resources allow.
We are hoping to start Graveyard Tours at some point, as we have some memorials of historic interest as well as Flood Graves and War Graves. If you are interested in getting involved please contact Jane Gregory - janeygregory@blueyonder.co.uk.
Sheffield General Cemetery Trust Meeting
3 members of FoBC attended a meeting at the Sheffield General Cemetery on 10th May. Several representatives from both open and closed graveyards in Sheffield attended, to see if there were any areas where we could share good practice and ideas, pool resources as well as view the excellent progress that has been made in the General Cemetery due to lottery funding.
Notes from Sheffield Local Cemetery Network May 10th 6pm – 8pm
Present: Loxley Cemetery – Peter and Joy Wright
Wadsley Cemetery – Tony Jordan & Mrs Jordan (I am sorry I’ve forgotten your first name)
Christ Church Fulwood – Fiona Lockwood
Bradfield Cemetery – Jayne and Paul Gregory, John Marples
Wardsend Cemetery – Megan Tipping
Sheffield General Cemetery - Jo Meredith, Jo Pye, Sally Puddifoot, Tracey Harrison-Marr
After a short tour around Sheffield General Cemetery (both heritage and landscape tours were offered), the meeting continued in the Samuel Worth Chapel. Tracey explained that she was employed by Sheffield City Council as part of the Lottery project which was taking place at the General Cemetery and is supporting them with Volunteer Development. She was acting as a facilitator for this group.
Items discussed included:
• Different issues when cemetery is “open” to burials than a closed cemetery.
• Very difficult to please both wildlife and conservation enthusiasts along side heritage and history buffs. Neat graveyard v less tidy (overgrown) for wildlife etc.
• When there is an active church connected with the graveyard, then priority is given to the church over the graveyard
• Lack of volunteers to help with maintenance
• Provision of tools and where to store them.
• Lack of money and funding (see above re active church) – ideas for funding included contacting the Commonwealth War Graves Commission as they do pay for the upkeep of graves. Apply for Ward Pots Ward pots (sheffield.gov.uk) for smaller funding.
• Different “masters to serve” e.g. Peak District and Diocese – making it more difficult to act
• National Federation of Cemetery Friends is a great organisation to join and has members from many varied sizes of cemeteries. National Federation of Cemetery Friends
• Suggestion of creating a heritage trail of Sheffield Flood victims between different cemeteries for next year National Cemetery Week
• The network being a great place to share ideas and experiences
• Success of a local open day when over 200 people visited Loxley Cemetery
• Giving History Tours of Cemetery can raise much needed funds. You do not need famous people just stories about local people who are buried there.
It was agreed that the Local Network was a good idea and that attendees were happy to share their email addresses with each other. They would also be able to ask questions of the group members by having each other’s contact details.
These notes to be sent to other Cemeteries who were invited to see if they are willing to join and share email addresses.
It was suggested that the group meet up three times a year possibly at different cemeteries.
No date was set for next meeting. Tracey to arrange