Festive opening times and service changes
Check opening times and arrangements for our services over the Christmas and New Year period.
Funerals, burials and cremations
Find out how to arrange a funeral, burial or cremation.
Grounds maintenance
Grounds maintenance operations within our cemeteries are carried out following good horticultural practice, using suitable machinery and are carried out when weather permits. Since 2007 our council has operated a cut and leave policy which means that grass cuttings are not collected and are left spread over the maintained area.
Operations and frequencies of works carried out in cemeteries
| Operation | Frequency |
|---|---|
| Lift and level sunken lairs | Sunken lairs will be reinstated to match surrounding ground levels when they are discovered by staff or reported by the public. |
| Remove floral tributes | Floral tributes will be removed up to 28 days after an interment, or sooner if they have withered or have been defoliated by wildlife. |
| Remove holly wreaths | Holly wreaths will be removed between 1 March and 12 March. |
| Weed control on footpaths and roadways | Hard surfaces will be sprayed with non-selective herbicide every year in May or June, and August or September when weather permits. |
| Grass cutting | Grass areas will be cut every 2 weeks between April and October, weather permitting. Grass clippings will be spread over the maintained area. |
| Grass edges | Grass edges will be strimmed once a month between March and October, weather permitting. |
| Shrub bed weed control | Shrub beds will be sprayed with non-selective herbicide twice a year when weather permits taking care not to damage the existing shrubs. |
| Shrub bed pruning | Shrub beds will be assessed in autumn each year and pruned between November and March if necessary. |
| Litter collection | Every cemetery will be checked for litter and cleared weekly. |
| Litter bins | Litter bins will be checked and emptied twice a week. Any spillages will be removed at the same time. |
| Leaf clearance | Leaves will be removed once a year between November and February. |
| Tree maintenance | Pruning or remedial works will be done when necessary. |
| Closed cemeteries | Grass areas will be cut once in May, July and September, when weather permits. All other maintenance will be the same as for other cemeteries. |
| Closed cemeteries wildflower areas | In late March or early April these will be cut to 75mm, with cuttings left where they fall. In September these will be cut to 75mm, with cuttings left where they fall for a week or 2 weeks, then removed. All pernicious weeds will be removed or spot-treated with an approved selective herbicide. |
Wildflower areas in closed cemeteries
During our community conversations and consultation we discussed the option of introducing wildflower areas within our closed cemeteries to add interest and colour, as well as providing a natural habitat for wildlife. People received this very positively and 77% of respondents stated that they would be keen for this to happen.
As a result, wildflowers will be introduced in those closed cemeteries where suitable ground and soil conditions are present, to allow them to establish,flourish and reproduce. It may take several years for these areas to fully establish.
Memorial headstone safety project
Lairholders are responsible for the maintenance and repair of their lairs, including memorials and headstones. Dumfries and Galloway Council is responsible for the safety of members of the public, visitors and our team members within our cemeteries.
Dumfries and Galloway Council is a burial authority. Burial authorities have a legal obligation under the Health and Safety at Work Act etc.1974 and the Occupiers Liability (Scotland) Act 1960 to ensure that, as far as is reasonably practicable, cemeteries are maintained in a safe condition. A programme of memorial and headstone safety inspections is a permanent responsibility of all burial authorities.
Any work done in our cemeteries must be completed in a sensitive and respectful manner. This has always been, and will continue to be, a priority for council officers and our contractors.
Following the very sad death of an eight-year-old boy in Glasgow in 2015, as a result of being hit by a falling headstone, Dumfries and Galloway Council like other local authorities started a programme of works in our cemeteries to inspect and make memorials and headstones safe, in line with national guidance.
The Scottish Government's Burial ground memorial safety: local authority guidance and The Ministry of Justice's Managing the safety of burial ground memorials: practical advice for dealing with unstable memorials are the primary focus of our headstone and memorial safety inspection regime and progressing the project within Dumfries and Galloway.
Find out how we manage the safety of headstones.
Memorial masons registration scheme
Safety is of paramount importance within our cemeteries. We are carrying out inspection on all headstones and memorials, and making them safe, where necessary, through our memorial headstone safety project. It is also important that any new headstones are installed in a safe and competent manner to support this project.
We have developed a memorial mason registration scheme which any memorial mason working in a Dumfries and Galloway Council cemetery will have to be a member of. This will ensure that we know who is working within cemeteries at all times and will allow for ad hoc inspections of work to ensure safety within cemeteries.
The scheme will require all masons to operate to British Standard 8415, the BRAMM Blue Book and NAMM code of working practice. They will also need to have relevant insurance, to ensure that they will be working to the highest standards of workmanship and competence within our cemeteries. Stonemasons will not be allowed to sub-contract work to another mason unless they are also part of the scheme.