Churchyard Jottings

March is the month which traditionally heralds the start of spring but, as we all know, the seasons often have a mind of their own. The churchyard, although relatively neat, lacks colour and even the grass has decided that it has been too cold to grow. But, thanks to a new initiative put forward by Ken Griffiths and supported by Haslemere Town Council member, Claire Matthes, St Bartholomew’s churchyard will hopefully have an added splash of colour in the spring.

The intention is to establish a wildflower area within the main churchyard. It is hoped that by our taking the lead it will encourage others across the local community (eg businesses, churches and individuals) to create their own wildflower areas. There has already been a successful wildflower trial on Lion Green. It is seen also, for this year, as being complementary to Haslemere’s Coronation celebrations.

Verity Sutherland, our Children’s and Families Worker, is co-ordinating the project for St Bartholomew’s, as the aim is for children from The Den youth group to assist in the seed sowing. A suitable area, close to the Derby Road boundary and visible from the road and the path to The Link, has been earmarked for the wildflower project. The location is shown in the two accompanying photographs. This is an area with very few headstones and should be capable of being managed alongside the regular grass cutting regime. Hopefully the area will provide colour throughout May and well into the summer.

We shall need to inform Waverley BC that this area needs to be left uncut during the wildflower season. One might assume that this would work quite well with the principles of ‘No Mow May’ which have been discussed in this column before. However, when Waverley implemented this in some churchyards in 2021, including at St Bartholomew’s, it was in general not considered successful. One problem at the time, was that some parishes expected the contractor to turn up early in June to cut the grass again, which rather defeats the object of introducing new plant species and encouraging wildlife. In reality, a no mow regime needs to extend over a longer period to be effective. In many situations this is not realistic. Verges on the side of roads, for example, may impede sight lines if uncut and have an impact on road safety. Grass in churchyards, where there is much foot traffic, needs to be cut regularly to provide access to graves and prevent it from becoming unkempt. There should be no conflict in St Bartholomew’s as under our proposals the wildflowers will be in a small controlled area and cordoned off. Whatever borough wide policies for ‘No Mow May’ in 2023 are agreed by Waverley should not materially affect the project. This will be an item on the agenda for my planned meeting with Waverley.

I have previously promised an update on the long awaited restoration of the grave of the Revd Sanders Etheridge, who was Rector of this Parish from 1868 to 1897 and presided over the rebuilding of the church in 1870/71. Although the stonemason was commissioned in March 2022, I regret to say that numerous difficulties have delayed the work. I reported earlier on the nonavailability of stone due to a long backlog at the quarries as a result of Covid related issues. I visited the stonemason’s yard on 6 March and discussed the situation further. He explained that the Yorkshire quarry that would be supplying the specialist stone required for the work, in particular the Celtic cross, had so far not met the quality required. The current ‘bench’ being worked at the quarry, rather like a coal seam, has contained fissures and, therefore, is considered unsuitable as water would penetrate into the stonework and damage the memorial. The quarry have advised that they would shortly be moving on to the next level where it is thought the stone is of better quality and suitable for memorial masonry. We can only hope. But, rest assured, pressure on the stonemason will be maintained.

Finally, we have been approached by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC), who are seeking permission to fit their signs near the entrance to each of our churchyards to denote the presence of war graves. There are eleven war graves in total - three in the main churchyard, two in Derby Road and six in Weycombe Road. There should be no problem with this as the signs are commonplace in many churchyards. The CWGC require a PCC resolution and there is some form filling required. Once the administrative procedures are complete, the signs will be installed and maintained entirely at CWGC’s expense.