🔗 Share this article

Families whose relatives buried in resting places at risk from coastal erosion argue that a lack of decision over how to address the issue is creating unnecessary distress about the eternal homes of their departed family.

An Impending Threat to Ancient Churchyards

The council have identified three church graveyards in the villages of Happisburgh, Trimingham, and Mundesley as being in danger of being engulfed by the ocean in the next few generations.

A newly published study on the situation details a range of possible actions, from doing nothing to disinterring bodies and relocating them in more secure locations. Authorities say it is for local people to decide how to move forward.

“At the moment we’re in a state of uncertainty. It causes me distress. My parents wanted this to be their final resting place, but it won't be because of the encroaching sea.”

Projections indicate at least part of one graveyard could be claimed by the waves in the next 80 years, but some residents worry it will happen far earlier. “I think it’s got under 20 years, if you consider what’s occurred in the last 30 years,” one said.

Troubled by the Ghosts of Eccles

One resident recalled a childhood visit to the neighbouring village of Eccles, which has almost entirely vanished into the water, along with its place of worship and burial ground.

“It was possible to see human remains,” she said. “Some have this idealized notion that people’s remains will just get washed out to the ocean. They won’t. Individuals will collect remains as souvenirs and go plundering graves in search of treasures. It’s completely disrespectful.”

“I fear that the identical fate that befell at Eccles will happen here and there’ll be bones on the shore. I’d be appalled by that.”

A Soldier's Resting Place in Peril

Further up the coast lies the grave of a former paratrooper who died while serving abroad. His parent said she lost sleep after learning her child's final plot might one day be relocated.

“It does trouble me to consider this may not remain his permanent resting place,” she said. “To our family it’s an significant site to visit.”

She believes, new burials should stop but says it is premature to exhume current plots. “My preference for now is to take no action and watch carefully, but an timely resolution needs to be made when a critical moment has been attained.”

Searching for Solutions and Certainty

The lack of agreement over when and how to tackle the challenge has resulted in bereaved families feeling frustrated and worried.

Several families are calling for additional coastal protections to slow the unavoidable loss and to permit burials to continue for now. Different voices argue the moment for relocation is drawing near.

“It is very emotional,” a family member stated. “The council’s report was really good, but now there’s uncertainty about how it is taken forward. And everybody is avoiding responsibility over who is accountable.”

A local official confirmed the graveyards were under the care of the church authorities. “Ultimately it is up to them to choose the path to take. Our role is here to assist them through that process with residents.”

He added there was ample time to consider all the options. “This concerns decades before it begins getting lost.”

“There is no common view on what should be done yet. We need good community discussions to discover the right solutions for each village.”

The prospect of the loss of the churches and graveyards was labeled one of “profound sadness for the area,” but faith leaders also referenced a belief in life after death, offering a theological viewpoint on the temporal loss of sacred ground.