RESIDENTS have been complaining about a memorial garden that they say is a 'disgrace to them' and their loved ones.
Brampton residents who make use of the memorial garden in the town which is managed by Co-op FuneralCare are upset at its current state, which they; say has remained that way for over a year now, as the plants are overgrown and looking unkempt.
A complaint was raised in August last year about the same issue, Co-op said maintenance will be carried out on a ‘very regular basis’ and they’ll be monitoring it closely going forward, however, the garden has remained in recent weeks to be unchanged.
It is of particular concern for Brenda Hardy, whose husband’s ashes are there along with a headstone.
She goes there regularly just to tend to her husband’s plot and some neighbouring ones.
She said: "When I first interred my husband's ashes there it was pristine but now it's not, especially in winter when we're slipping on leaves.
"It's definitely worse than last year.
"We attended a parish council meeting; the council were quite involved, and they took our side.
"They're going to write to the Co-op, I think some people from the Co-op were invited but they didn't attend.
"When I was last there were a couple of flagstones loose and I tripped over them.
"Since Co-op FuneralCare closed their shop there it's gone downhill.
"Someone has planted a tree with a plaque, but you can't even read it because it's so overgrown."
Her friend Bill Walton said: "We are very concerned about the maintenance of the garden.
"Had relatives of the deceased known it would turn out like this they wouldn't have put them there.
"Co-op has a contract with people who placed their loved ones there.
"It was always nice to go down there, at the moment it is absolute disgrace, it's a sign of disrespect."
A Co-op Funeralcare spokesperson, said: “We take our responsibilities around the upkeep of Brampton memorial garden very seriously and understand how important it is to those who have lost a loved one.
“We are very sorry that the garden has not been maintained to the high standards we would expect and sincerely apologise for any distress this has caused.
“We can confirm that planned work has been carried out in the past week and we’re now working with a local gardener who will be tending to the garden on a weekly basis.
“We will monitor this closely going forward.”
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