Calls have been made for ornate gates at Seagoe Cemetery – which have not been painted or restored in close to two decades – to receive a little bit over long-overdue TLC.
From Kernan Cemetery to Seagoe Cemetery, concerns over maintenance and conditions surrounding graveyards in the borough has been an issue raised time and time again.
Ulster Unionist Councillor Julie Flaherty had most recently flagged the state of Kernan Cemetery at the last meeting of ABC Council’s environmental services committee.
She told then how how conditions were so bad she had even been approached with complaints on her doorstep and as she tended her own son’s grave.
When the issue received an encore at ABC Council’s full monthly meeting, Councillor Flaherty acknowledged that some work had been done and “an extra member of staff appointed”, and the team there had been “excellent”.
But she added: “This needs to be maintained. You can still see that there’s work needs done, and I know they will get to it, and extra people have been brought in, but I cannot come back to this again and again and again when this is one of our core services.
“I believe clearly there’s two issues. It’s the HR process for getting our staff into these roles and it’s the linkage that has developed between environmental services and parks. Those are the things that need addressed, because if I have to come back next year about Kernan again, I think I’ll lose the plot, excuse the pun, because it’s really not funny. It really isn’t funny.”
DUP Councillor Kyle Moutray welcomed that the issue had been raised, as Kernan Cemetery had been “in terrible condition” , and it was “great to hear” some improvements had been made.
He did, however, have concerns of his own around the condition of the rear entrance gates at Seagoe Cemetery, where “a lot of the same issues have existed with regards to general upkeep”.
Said Councillor Moutray: “I recently visited the cemetery after being contacted by a frequent visitor to the graveyard. Along with the general upkeep issues that we’ve mentioned already, I was particularly concerned to see the condition of the rear entrance gates.
“These gates are clearly in a poor state of repair, with significant deterioration. They’re rusted, there’s paint chipping off. It looks totally out of place.
“One visitor told me that these gates hadn’t actually been painted or restored in excess of 18 years. So this clearly doesn’t reflect the standards that families across our borough expect when it comes to cemeteries.
“Ultimately, cemeteries are places of the utmost dignity and respect. They’re important spaces for local families and it’s essential that their expectations are met.
“I would therefore ask officers to consider this issue with urgency and to provide an update on planned maintenance works, specifically for the gates at Seagoe Cemetery that currently look completely out of place, and to outline what steps are being taken to address wider concerns across cemeteries over the borough, because clearly there are issues there.
“Recruitment certainly seems to be a key issue, but if we could have further exploration into that, that would be key.”
Jonathan Hayes, director of environmental services and sustainability, said that a number of recruitment exercises had returned staff in advance of when they were being expected, with issues “resolved somewhat” and “additional staff on the ground”.
He accepted too the need for “maintaining the condition of all of our cemeteries” going forward and promised to provide a further update around any ongoing recruitment to ensure this happens.
In relation to Seagoe Cemetery, the director said he would follow this issue up with council’s estates derpartmernt.
Mr Hayes understood the condition of the gates had “been logged” and it was “on a schedule”, but assured that he would bring back details in relation to timeline and ensuring the gates too were maintained.
Councillor Flaherty seconded that work to the gates be “expedited”, adding: “We just need to get these things done. These jobs just need done.”
