As anyone who has visited Wycombe cemetery will know the burial spaces are fast running out indeed there is said to be only enough burial land remaining for another 15 years.

If you have been reading the news section of this site over the past few months you may have seen the various articles about the lack of burial space.

On the 29th April 2009 a news article appeared announcing the introduction of grave reservation in the Muslim burial section.

Apparently the religion only allows for one burial in each grave and the reservation system will allow provision for living relatives to be buried next to their deceased loved ones when the time comes.

Obviously the reservation process announced in 2009 meant the burial area would fill up quicker as space would be standing empty due to being reserved for living people.

Now it seems the burial area has filled quicker than expected and will be full within two years.

With a statutory requirement to provide burial spaces for all religions it was decided on 14th June this year to allocate £150,000 from the towns ”Special Expenses” fund to extend the Muslim burial area.

The money was, at the time of allocation, almost half the entire towns Special Expenses fund.

Initially the extension to the Muslim burial area was to be created using land reserved for Christian burial but the Church of England refused to de-consecrate the land.

Surely the idea of using land prepared for Christian burial would have merely been robbing Peter to pay Paul and would have created burial problems for the towns Christians in the future?

The extension will now be created from land formerly used as allotments.

Is there not a much larger issue here?

Why are the towns Muslims (and Christians) being provided with a cemetery that will only last for 15 years?

Wycombe cemetery is on the side of a hill so in order to extend the Muslim burial section the land needs to be terraced and walls, paths and steps all have to be built resulting in the cost of £150k.

The town of Wycombe has expanded over the years so wouldn't be better to use the £150k to go towards purchasing a flatter piece of land elsewhere in Wycombe and create a new cemetery that does not require so much ground work to prepare it for burials?

Maybe the old Harrisons site would be suitable or perhaps the CompAir site just across the valley from the existing cemetery?

What do you think?

My next blog will be published on Tuesday evening but don't forget to return next Sunday when my blog will be about my recent return visit to Hughenden park.