Elected Member Briefing - Memorial Safety Programme Update, August 2025

About this Briefing Note

Report by: Andy Clegg, Community Greenspace Manager 

EMBN Number: 099-25  

Date: 7 August 2025 

Subject: Memorial Safety Inspection Update, August 2025 

Responsible Officer: Katrina Hartnett, Team Leader, Bereavement Services

Details

Purpose

This briefing provides an update on the Council's Memorial Safety Programme including the introduction and implications of the Burial (Management) (Scotland) Regulations 2025. 

Briefing Information

In June 2019, the Scottish Government issued guidelines to all burial authorities regarding Burial Ground Memorial Safety. They followed the death of a child from climbing on a large headstone in 2015 and a subsequent Fatal Accident Inquiry by the Crown Office. The guidelines recommend all burial authorities inspect memorials on a 5-year rolling programme, although no additional resources were provided for this work. 

More recently, the Burial (Management) (Scotland) Regulations 2025 commenced on 1 March this year and Regulation 4(1) requires burial authorities to carry out regular scheduled inspections to identify any headstone or memorial which is not in safe order. All inspections are to be documented and be available for audit if needed. 

With over 90,000 headstones in 176 burial grounds in 132 locations, the Council agreed to allocate recurring revenue resources to undertake inspections and stabilisation along with wall repairs in 2018, and a programme has been running since then. Property Services have addressed the wall repairs but given limited specialist contractor availability and capacity at times for the memorial inspection and stabilisation, it was decided to establish an in-house specialist squad in 2023.  

Whilst the maintenance of headstones is the responsibility of the lair right holder, it is widely known that over time, maintenance work is often not carried out because the lair owner is absent or cannot be traced. In addition, burial authorities have duties under the Occupier Liability (Scotland) Act 1960 and the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 to do all that is reasonably practicable to ensure that visitors, and those working in burial grounds, are not exposed to risks to their health and safety. 

Inspections are conducted using a prioritised approach, with sections of cemeteries categorised based on footfall, age, location and other factors. All headstones will be tested within this programme. The memorial inspections need to run in tandem with the ability to make safe any memorial which fails the inspection, otherwise the public could potentially be excluded from large areas of cemeteries where works are identified as being needed but resources are not available to carry them out. Once all headstones and memorials across the Perth and Kinross cemetery estate have been inspected, it is likely future inspections could be achieved within the Scottish Government's recommended 5-year cycle. 

Each memorial inspection is a unique risk assessment, with the size of the memorial not influencing the fact that each memorial must be subjected to an inspection. Once the visual inspection has been completed, a physical assessment is carried out via a hand pressure test, mechanical tests are not undertaken. All memorials are photographed at the point of testing and the outcome of the inspection is documented and the test is logged in a testing app which can be used for any family enquiries. Any work to memorials is done with due respect and only where necessary for safety reasons. 

Memorial Testing Programme Review - April 2025 

In April 2025, an operational review of the Memorial Testing Programme was conducted. Memorials are now classified into the following categories based on their condition: 

• Category 1: No movement detected. The memorial is stable and will be re-inspected within five years

• Category 2: Minor movement detected. While the memorial does not pose an immediate risk, it requires monitoring. A reinspection will be carried out within 2 years. A notice including PKC contact information will be placed in front of the memorial to inform visiting relatives.

• Category 3: Significant movement detected during assessment. Immediate action is required to mitigate risk. The memorial will be made safe and a notice with PKC contact information will be placed in front of the memorial to advise visiting relatives. If up to date lair owner information is available, a letter will also be sent to the current lair owner. 

How a memorial is made safe 

A dangerous memorial is made safe in the first instance by:  

• Lying flat- this is a temporary measure carried out by the team when a memorial is considered to cause an immediate danger. The inscription is face up and the memorial is supported slightly off the ground on a wooden block with a gentle slope to allow water to run off. If there are up to date records for the current lair owner, they will be contacted and advised that the stone has been made safe. If there are not up to date contact details and no one comes forward to confirm ownership and intention to repair, the memorial will be socketed within 12 months of the original test.

• Socketing involves keeping the headstone upright by digging the memorial 1 third into the ground at a lower height , which means some of the inscription may be lost due to the depth required to make the memorial safe. Wherever possible, as much of the inscription is left visible for families and visitors to read. This method removes the hazard while enabling the memorial to perform its intended function as a grave marker within an area of remembrance and can allow further remedial action in the longer term. (Jeanfield cemetery Parochial 1&2 is an example of this style of repair)

• Removing unstable parts of the memorial and placing the removed part at the foot of the memorial. 

How do we make people aware of the testing? 

To ensure lair owners and cemetery visitors are as aware as possible of the inspection and any subsequent work, the following process is undertaken: 

• Awareness is raised generally through signage being placed at each affected cemetery at least 28 days in advance of testing.

• Regular updates are provided for community councils, councillors, MSPs and MPs, Churches and ministers, family history society, faith groups, funeral directors, and Friends of Cemetery groups in particular areas and Cemeteries where works are taking place.

• Signage is placed on fences and gates to notify and provide more information for local communities.  

• Individual lair owners will be contacted if their memorial fails the inspection provided contact details exist. 

Due to the age of many headstones, the lair owner or next of kin may not be identifiable, meaning they cannot be contacted directly. If they have not seen any signage or been otherwise made aware of the inspections taking place, this may lead to complaints, but there is little that can be done about this.  

Where are we now? 

In April 2018, two bereavement services officers were trained to carry out memorial testing in house using qualified external contractors to do any work required. Due to the scale of the task, in 2023 it was agreed that a dedicated memorial inspection team comprising of 4 members of staff, be recruited. Since inspections began over 19,000 memorials have been assessed, with more than 7000 made safe. 

Inspections would suggest an initial failure rate of just under 37% of the headstones tested which would mean potentially 36,000 headstones needing to be made safe. ,  Many of these are in the higher risk cemeteries and the failure rate will reduce over time as the newer headstones are expected to pass the tests.  

It was originally anticipated the memorial team, and the contractors would carry out 8,000 inspections and around 2500 repairs per annum. Due to staffing and recruitment issues the squad has not been able to operate at full capacity for periods of time. These issues have been largely resolved and, following the review and slight modifications to the process, a revised target will be set in the coming months. 

For the larger headstones and memorials needing specialist equipment and qualifications, an external contractor assists our in-house team as required and where there is available budget.  

A list of cemeteries which are due for inspection will be published on the PKC website and the programmed works will begin in the next few weeks. Signs have been displayed at the cemeteries for several weeks to make visitors aware of the inspections and upcoming stabilisation works.  

Elected members will be notified when programmed inspections and stabilisation works are scheduled to take place in their wards. Additionally, the memorial inspection information will be updated on our website to keep customers informed. 

To enable lair owners to be contacted regarding memorial safety or for any other reasons, it's advisable that people update the lair ownership details through the Council's Bereavement Services. This would include address changes or lair owner details including the transfer of lair ownership if the original owner is deceased. This can be carried out by contacting Perth Crematorium on ESburials@pkc.gov.uk or by calling 01738 459659. 

Wall repairs 

Property Services will continue with inspections and repairs to cemetery boundary walls and any buildings on a prioritised basis subject to budgets available   This will be coordinated with the headstone stabilisation works where possible to minimise disruption to the cemetery and service provision. 

Following publication, it would be helpful if Elected Members could pass this information on to any interested constituents, or make them aware of the relevant webpages, should they make any related enquiries. Further updates will be provided is there are any changes to the procedures or performance set out in this briefing note.