Cemetery set to extend onto allotment site due to lack of burial space in Northampton

The issue is being addressed by a new task group at Northampton Borough Council, following a published report looking at demand over the next decade.

Additional land has now been identified at Dallington cemetery, but it would result in the loss of the allotments currently on site.

Speaking at a borough council scrutiny meeting on April 30, the council’s head of customer and cultural services Marion Goodman told councillors: “This will impact on an allotment and so we will give notice to them to find a new one. We certainly have space for the next four to five years and beyond that we are looking at 10 years.”

Committee member Councillor Gareth Eales wants to see allotment users notified as soon as possible. He said: “It is clear we need to look at cemetery capacity moving forward, but the concern I have about the proposition to extend Dallington Cemetery into the adjacent Harlestone Road allotment site is a lack of communication with allotment users.

“This announcement will be a newsflash for some and it will create a level of panic. So the council needs to get its engagement right and quickly, working alongside the Allotments Committee.”

The report by environmental consultants Enzygo, which was published in September 2018, found that the total number of burial plots required in the town is 4,011 by 2029, and 8,456 by 2036.

It recommends the extension of current cemeteries, and where needed, into allotments as is being suggested at Dallington.

The committee also heard that a number of trees have been removed at Towcester Road Cemetery to create extra space, which can be used in two years’ time once the soil has settled.

Work is also currently underway on a feasibility study to look at the requirements for a new large crematorium and cemetery for the town.