Tag: Brandwood End

Changes to Crematoria and Cemeteries.

Changes to crematoria and cemeteries

Published: Thursday, 13th May 2021

As of Monday 17 May, in line with the government’s road map, changes are being made to the rules governing crematoria and cemeteries.

There will be no limit for outdoor funerals and up to 30 people can now attend a wake or other commemorative event. However, services in chapels will continue to be limited due to social distancing measures.

Councillor Sharon Thompson, Cabinet Member for Homes and Neighbourhoods, said “I welcome the increase in the number of people being able to attend funerals at our crematoria and funerals outside can now go ahead without limits on the number of people attending. This will make it much better for grieving families and those wanting to attend a funeral service.  Our priority has always been to maintain the dignity of those who have sadly passed away and to support their loved ones in holding a funeral that meets their cultural, religious and general desires. This has been incredibly difficult during the pandemic as we have also had to minimise the likelihood of Covid spreading within the city.  However, I am pleased we are now able to lift the restrictions as the country moves back towards some form of normality.

The only service yet to be re-instated is the practice of grave backfilling by the funeral attenders. We will keep these changes under review but hope to relax any outstanding restrictions by 21 June in line with the government’s road map.”

For full details please see our webpage at https://www.birmingham.gov.uk/cemeteries

 

 

Memorial/Headstone testing.

Safety tests have been undertaken on monuments in B8 and B10. Some headstones tested are deemed unsafe so Bereavements may be trying to contact grave owners. DO THEY HAVE YOUR CORRECT ADDRESS? Please try and visit to check your relatives grave if it is in those areas and make sure Bereavement Services at Kings Norton are aware if you have moved. These are quite old burial sections so some grave sites may have no living relatives. Graves that have been deemed in need of action have been ‘blue’ taped and attached to posts. Ultimately these headstones will be laid flat to avoid damage to them and unsuspecting passers- by unless grave owners rectify the situation.  If you think your details are out of date you can e mail your present address to : brandwood.endcem@birmingham.gov.uk 

Remember to include the grave number off your deeds!

Resurfacing on main drive complete.

Some of the worst areas of the main drive have been resurfaced in the last week. There are undoubtedly  lots of hot spots still in need of repair but time and finance struggle to coordinate! Well done to Bereavement staff for getting this done at one of their busiest times, and whilst they didn’t actually lay the tarmac- they did have to organise access and areas. Not a simple job !!

 

Poppy Project

Every year the Friends and their supporters place Poppy Crosses on  ‘War Graves’ within Brandwood End Cemetery. This includes anyone lost as a result of conflict, civilians as well as Armed Forces personnel. Some of these graves are Commonwealth War Graves but many are family graves. In all there are 350+…..but we continue to find the names of those in family graves not yet on our list.

The task of placing these crosses represents a challenge, as the graves are scattered throughout the cemetery and not as well marked as the one you see here, but it is both poignant and rewarding.

If you think you may be interested to train to undertake this annual task, we would love to hear from you. You need to be sytematic and sure footed….and not deterred by inclement weather as this task is undertaken in late October and early November prior to our Remembrance Service. You will need to have a minimum of half a day of your time available but if you think you can help please contact us at:-       friendsofbec@gmail.com

 

 

 

Best use of a few rare dry hours!!

The Friends grabbed the chance to tidy up the hedge surrounding a small Commonwealth War Graves area before the rain started again!

 

Before and after. All that is needed are a couple of hours to spare and a few willing hands!!

We have several hundred War Graves in Brandwood End and neither ourselves nor Bereavements Services staff can find an explanation as to why these 8 graves are not dispersed within the cemetery like the others. There have been many theories but all have proved incorrect. No one knows……unless you know different??

 

Chapel news gets better and better!

The Friends were delighted to be invited, by Bereavement Service staff, to join them on a rare opportunity to actually get inside the chapels !

They were joined by City Council officials, eager to view the newly fitted temporary roof and inspect the work already done. Everyone agreed that the visit had been well worth while and it stirred enthusiasm all round, that these magnificent buildings should not be allowed to deteriorate further. This is the present stance of BCC . Those present included-  Alison Fumagalli (BCC Registrar / South) Bev Nash (BCC Registrar North) Andy King (BCC Principal Building Surveyor Building Consultancy Acivico) Coral Howard FBEC Vice Chair, Kerry Tinkler FBEC Committee Member, Steve Hollingworth (BCC Assistant Director/Regulation and Enforcement) and Dawn Harding (BCC Bereavement Officer responsible for Brandwood End and Kings Norton Cemeteries)

St George’s Day and the Mushroom sharing his name!

We all know that the 23rdApril is St George’s Day, but did we know that there is a St George’s Mushroom? What’s even more exciting is that they are growing in the cemetery!

St George’s mushrooms are so named as they are usually ready to pick from about St George’s Day, and it was with great joy that Carola, a member of our committee, stumbled across a specimen whilst refreshing our notice boards! The link below will tell you a little more about them and it appears that the ‘River Cottage’ Chef, is most partial to recipes including these edible mushrooms.

https://www.mushroomtable.com/mushrooms-menu/wild-mushrooms/saint-georges/

Remember never to pick and eat mushrooms/fungi unless you are accompanied by someone who knows which is which- as eating the wrong sort can be fatal!