🔗 Share this article

Loved ones whose relatives laid to rest in graves vulnerable to shoreline retreat state that a lack of decision over how to tackle the problem is creating avoidable anguish concerning the eternal homes of their departed family.

A Looming Threat to Historic Churchyards

The council have singled out three church graveyards in the villages of Happisburgh, Trimingham, and Mundesley as being at risk of being swallowed by the ocean in the next few generations.

A newly published study on the situation sets out a series of possible actions, from taking no action to exhuming remains and relocating them in safer sites. Authorities say it is for the community to decide how to move forward.

“Right now we’re in limbo. It upsets me. They intended this to be their last home, but it won't be because of the sea.”

Estimates indicate at least a portion of one graveyard could be claimed by the sea in the next 80 years, but some locals fear it will happen far earlier. “In my view it’s got less than 20 years, if you consider what’s occurred in the last 30 years,” a farmer stated.

Haunted by the Past

One resident recalled a school trip to the neighbouring settlement of Eccles, which has almost entirely vanished into the sea, including its place of worship and burial ground.

“You could see people’s bones,” she said. “Certain people hold this romantic idea that the deceased will just get washed out to sea. They won’t. People will take bones as souvenirs and go plundering graves looking for valuables. It’s completely disrespectful.”

“I’m worried that the same thing that befell at Eccles will happen at Happisburgh and there’ll be bones on the beach. I’d be appalled by that.”

A Soldier's Resting Place in Jeopardy

Along the shoreline lies the grave of a ex-soldier killed while serving abroad. His mother expressed she lost sleep after discovering her son’s grave might one day be moved.

“It truly disturb me to think this won’t be his permanent resting place,” she said. “For us it’s an important site to visit.”

In her view, new burials should cease but says it is premature to exhume existing graves. “My preference for now is to take no action and closely monitor, but an early decision needs to be made when a critical moment has been attained.”

Seeking Answers and Clarity

An absence of consensus over when and how to tackle the problem has left grieving relatives feeling exasperated and anxious.

Some are calling for more sea defences to slow the unavoidable loss and to allow burials to proceed for now. Others contend the moment for moving graves is approaching.

“It is very emotive,” said one relative. “The council’s report was really good, but now there’s uncertainty about how it is implemented. And all parties is washing their hands over who is responsible.”

A coastal manager said the burial sites were under the care of the local diocese. “Ultimately it is down to them to choose the path to take. We are here to assist them through that journey with communities.”

It was also stated there was time to consider all the options. “This concerns decades before it starts to be lost.”

“There is no unified opinion on what should happen yet. We need good local conversations to find the right answers for each community.”

The possibility of the loss of the churches and graveyards was described as one of “profound sadness for the local community,” but faith leaders also spoke of a doctrine in life after death, providing a spiritual perspective on the physical disappearance of sacred ground.