Churchyards

The petitioners proposed a 21-space car park in the churchyard of the Victorian Grade II church, in order to formalise existing parking arrangements. There was a shortage of available parking for visitors to the church and parish centre and parking in the churchyard already occurred. The Chancellor granted a faculty, being satisfied that the works were designed to “have a low impact visually and to protect the grass surface of the churchyard, to minimise disturbance of grave sites and to fulfil an obvious need for visitors to the church”.

The works proposed were for the construction of below ground drainage infrastructure in the churchyard, east of the chancel, to facilitate the future installation of toilets in the church, which would be the subject of a separate faculty petition. The Chancellor granted a faculty.

The Parochial Church Council wished to fell and grind out the roots of a holly tree and to repair a collapsed section of the churchyard wall. A parishioner objected that the removal of the tree was unnecessary; that judicious pruning would allow the wall to be rebuilt; and that the cost was excessive. The proposal was recommended by the Diocesan Advisory Committee, a tree specialist and the church's inspecting architect. The Chancellor was satisfied that a good case had been made for the removal of the tree and he granted a faculty, subject to a condition for a replacement planting in the churchyard.

The Chancellor granted a faculty to authorise the felling of a sycamore tree. The petitioners had claimed that the work was necessary because the tree’s roots were damaging the churchyard retaining wall and the foundations of the church. In giving his judgment, the Chancellor set out the legal and practical aspects which should be taken into account when determining an application to remove a tree from a churchyard.

The petitioners wished the Chancellor to authorise the setting aside of an area for cremated remains in the churchyard extension and to authorise a variation of the standard churchyards regulations in order to allow the incumbent to permit in future the erection of upright memorials and 'desktop memorials' in the churchyard extension to mark interments of cremated remains. They also asked the Chancellor to grant a confirmatory faculty in respect of upright memorials and 'desktop memorials' already installed to mark interments of cremated remains in the churchyard and churchyard extension during the past 18 years. The Chancellor was satisfied that the petitioners had made out a satisfactory case for the proposals and granted a faculty accordingly

The petitioners wished to amend the Churchyards Regulations in relation to the parish of Minety only. The proposal was to replace Regulation 8, which provides (inter alia) for interments to be marked by memorials laid horizontal just below the level of the surrounding turf, with a new Regulation 8 including authority for the incumbent to give permission for an upright memorial (but not a cross) in the area set aside for cremated remains where cremated remains are interred next to the adjacent wall. The Chancellor granted a faculty.

The Deputy Chancellor granted a faculty to authorise the removal from the churchyard of a tree which was in danger of causing damage to an adjoining property.

The Grade I church of St. Leonard Old Langho is closed and vested in the Churches Conservation Trust, but the churchyard remains the responsibility of the Parochial Church Council. The vicar of the parish in which the church lies applied for a retrospective faculty to authorise the retention of two benches placed in the churchyard by persons unknown without the authority of a faculty or List B approval under the Faculty Jurisdiction Rules. Retrospective approval under List B is not possible, hence the need for a faculty. The Chancellor granted a faculty, but stated that in future he would "expect any PCC to petition for the removal of any unauthorised benches which they may find within their churchyard, leaving it to the person or persons who placed each bench there to petition for its retention, and to justify their conduct in having proceeded without prior lawful authority."

Faculty granted for the removal wooden and plastic kerbs from a number of graves.

The petition sought permission for works to improve access at St Martin’s Church, Brampton, a Grade I listed church and the only church designed by Philip Webb, with stained glass by Burne-Jones and Morris. The proposed works included internal alterations and major external access works involving a ramp and lift at the principal entrance. The Victorian Society objected to the external proposals. The Chancellor accepted that there was a compelling and well-evidenced need to improve access, noting that the steep steps excluded many worshippers, visitors, and community users, and undermined the Church’s mission. However, applying the Duffield framework, he found that the external access proposals would cause a high degree of harm to the Church’s exceptional significance, particularly its unaltered integrity as a unique work by Webb. Although the public benefit of equal access was substantial, the Court concluded that the petitioners had not yet fully explored a potentially less harmful alternative entrance beneath the Paradise Window, partly due to a misunderstanding of rights over the adjoining car park. As serious harm to a Grade I building should be permitted only exceptionally, the external proposals were refused. The internal works, car park resurfacing, and minor ancillary works were approved.