Trefriw Community Council grants the right to erect a memorial separately to the Exclusive Right of Burial. The Grantee is able to control the style and wording of any memorial placed upon the grave, subject to the Council’s approval, memorial regulations and the payment of cemetery fees. A formal application for a permit must be made to the Clerk giving full details of the memorial.
As with the Exclusive Right of Burial, the Grantee must give his or her written consent before any memorial works may take place. The right to erect a memorial carries no assumption in law that the Grantee is entitled to be commemorated upon the memorial, which means that when the Grantee dies, a legal transfer of the ownership of the lease to these rights must be completed before any further memorial works can be approved.
Responsibility for any memorial erected on a grave lies with the person named on the Deed relating to it. That person should be aware of the possibility of an unsafe memorial falling on visitors to the cemetery or cemetery staff with possibly fatal results. Even small memorials can cause serious injury to young children. The safety of memorials is of great concern to the council and any memorial which is considered a potential safety hazard may be re-fixed or lowered without notice to the owner. Any costs the council incurs will be charged to the owner of the grave.
Memorials in “lawned” burial areas
In the Lawned Areas of the cemetery, the Council does not permit any item other than a traditional headstone mounted on a concrete base or a slab sunk below the level of the surrounding turf.
Neither does it allow vaults, railings, kerbs or other enclosures and items such as wooden crosses, wooden or synthetic fencing, kerbing, bedding plants, vases, flower displays, windmills etc. as a temporary or permanent measure.
A memorial ground plaque may (subject to application approval) be installed.
For full details please consult the Cemetery Rules which are available here
Damage to Graves
Trefriw Community Council will not be held responsible for any damage caused to a grave or memorial except where it can be proved that the damage is the result of maintenance operations. It is recommended that memorials are insured against accidental or wilful damage.
All vases, statues, plants and flowers etc. that are left on graves are left at the owners risk and it is recommended that such unfixed items are marked with the grave number and the name of the deceased to identify them and reduce their value to thieves. The cemetery is a public amenity and you are recommended to take the same precautions with your possessions as you would in any other public space. Anyone witnessing any criminal act in the cemetery grounds should report the matter to the local police.
If you need more information about buying a grave or placing a memorial on one you already own, please contact the Clerk.