Outrage from mourning families after gravestones covered in stickers by council

Some gravestones in Scotland have been plastered with ‘disrespectful’ health and safety notices by a council.

The warning signs at cemeteries across Glasgow state headstones fail safety standards and some names, dates of death and tributes are obscured.

While there has been outrage from relatives of the deceased, Glasgow City Council has justified the move.

It argues some gravestones are wobbly, need repair and are ‘dangerous’.

Mourners have accused the council of ‘defacing’ the graves and say the actions are ‘morally wrong’.

Sami Tollett saw the stickers when she visited her dad’s grave at Riddrie Park Cemetery.

She told BBC Scotland: ‘It’s disgusting and morally wrong to deface somebody’s resting place.

‘It’s actually sad to see. It used to be a lovely place, well kept and maintained, but now it’s an eyesore.

‘It’s even worse with the big stickers all over the headstones.’

Gillian Sooter, who was visiting Lambhill Cemetery, said she was upset that the labels were ‘covering up the people’s names’.

‘It looks terrible to think your loved ones are lying here and on their stones are a big white sticker,’ she said.

The city council has inspected cemeteries annually since Ciaran Williamson, eight, died in 2015, when a headstone in the Craigton graveyard fell on him.

The inquiry into his death heard how there were 900 unsafe headstones at the cemetery in the days after his death.

The council said it uses a ‘topple test’ where council workers push them to see if they are unstable and loose.

It says it can understand why families might be upset but it does not want a repeat of 2015.

In a statement, the council said: ‘Regular inspections of headstones is a statutory obligation for the council but the maintenance and upkeep of any memorial is a matter for the owner.

‘However, as owners themselves pass on, identifying a person to take responsibility for headstone maintenance can become very challenging.

‘Applying these notices to headstones is an effective way to reach out to families and they have helped us to make contact with people who have an interest in undertaking necessary repairs.

‘Headstone maintenance is not a service we provide and families must privately engage an appropriate stonemason to complete any work.

‘As a last resort, headstones will be laid flat to ensure public safety, although we know this can cause upset to families when they become aware of the poor condition of their family members’ memorial.’

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