Leicester City Council (19 003 318)
Category : Environment and regulation > Cemeteries and crematoria
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 19 Aug 2019
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: Mr X complained about the Council’s failure to inform relatives about the removal of soil and ashes from a remembrance garden in a cemetery in 1982. The Ombudsman should not investigate this complaint. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault for which a remedy could be recommended now
The complaint
- The complainant, whom I shall call Mr X, complains about the Council’s failure to inform him that his parents’ ashes were no longer in a garden of remembrance which he has been visiting since they were removed in 1982.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- We can decide whether to start or discontinue an investigation into a complaint within our jurisdiction. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 24A(6) and 34B(8), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
- I have considered all the information which Mr X submitted with his complaint. I have also considered the Council’s response and Mr X has commented on the draft decision.
What I found
- Mr X says he discovered in 2018 that the garden of remembrance where his parents’ ashes had been scattered in 1976 had the soil and plants removed and replaced in 1982. He says he has visited the site annually since then and was unaware that the Council had removed the ashes.
- The Council says the scattering of ashes over time reduces the capacity of the soil to support plants and so it had to be replaced. It told Mr X that human ashes do not last indefinitely and that they would have decayed over time to basic minerals regardless of its actions. It cannot guarantee that ashes will remain in the soil for all time.
- The Ombudsman cannot recommend a remedy for an event which took place over 35 years ago. The Council would not have been able to notify all relatives of its change of plants and soil in the gardens as many parties would be involved and it took place in a pre-internet time. There is no requirement for a local authority to preserve scattered ashes on a site for ever.
Final decision
- The Ombudsman should not investigate this complaint. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault for which a remedy could be recommended now.
Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman