A Nottinghamshire village could soon host a new cemetery aiming to revive a style of burial dating back thousands of years. The site would be the only one in the East Midlands if approved, with historic local funeral firm A.W. Lymn being one of the companies behind the plans.
Barrows were said to have been the dominant method of housing the dead well into the Middle Bronze Age, with the sites comprising a burial chamber used to store the cremated ashes of loved ones. The Sacred Stones company was established in 2015 to bring back this tradition, with sites already operating in locations such as Shropshire and Cambridgeshire.
But the company could soon be building its first East Midlands site in Calverton if Gedling Borough Council approves a planning application submitted in January. The site would be situated off George's Lane, where A.W. Lymn already has planning permission for a large cemetery on greenbelt land.
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The funeral firm first applied for its Calverton cemetery site in March 2018, but then submitted another last January when the opportunity arose to buy additional land and extend it. The company says extending the cemetery allowed it to "provide better access from the highway."
Explaining the most recent application, Pete Clarson, the Commercial Director at A.W. Lymn, said: "The third application arose as we were approached by Sacred Stones, who asked if we had an appropriate parcel of land to use for a barrow. After visiting their other sites, we were blown away by the barrows as they fit seamlessly into the countryside and have a positive ecological impact.
"We knew it would make the perfect fit for our cemetery site as we could offer a space for cremated remains, which is unique in our county, alongside the traditional burial options." Cremated ashes are held in alcoves set in the interior walls of the barrows, known as niches.
Sacred Stone says the niches at its sites are available in renewable terms of up to 99 years, allowing them to be used as either a temporary resting place or as one that passes between generations. Each niche comes with a stone facade which can be personalised, with some families having chosen stained glass doors that can be opened.
Toby Angel, the Managing Director of Sacred Stones, said: "We've been working on the barrow scheme with A.W. Lymn for some time now and we are honoured to be working with a family business that, like barrows, has and will continue to stand the test of time."
If approved, the development will comprise two open chambers and one grass covered round barrow, with all three providing a combined total of 756 niches. Permission already granted for the wider cemetery site will see 18 car parking spaces and an additional 12 overflow spaces being built.
Pete Clarson added: "We are currently working with a planning consultant and Gedling Borough Council to discharge the planning conditions of application two which will enable us to start work immediately. Given the timeframes of the planning processes, we hope the cemetery opening will fall in 2024, with the barrows under way at that stage too."
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