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Families of people buried in resting places at risk from shoreline retreat argue that indecision on how best to tackle the problem is creating unnecessary distress about the eternal homes of their loved ones.

A Looming Threat to Historic Churchyards

The council have identified three burial grounds in the communities of Happisburgh, Trimingham, and Mundesley as being in danger of being engulfed by the sea in the coming decades.

A newly published study on the issue sets out a range of possible actions, from taking no action to exhuming remains and relocating them in more secure sites. Authorities say it is for local people to determine how to proceed.

“Right now we’re in a state of uncertainty. It upsets me. They wanted this to be their final resting place, but it isn’t going to be because of the sea.”

Projections suggest at least a portion of one churchyard could fall into the sea in the next 80 years, but some locals fear it will happen far earlier. “I think it’s got under 20 years, if you consider what’s occurred in the last 30 years,” one said.

Troubled by the Ghosts of Eccles

A local business owner recalled a childhood visit to the nearby settlement of Eccles, which has almost entirely disappeared into the water, along with its place of worship and burial ground.

“It was possible to see people’s bones,” she said. “Some have this romantic idea that the deceased will just get carried away to the ocean. They won’t. People will take bones as mementos and go plundering graves looking for treasures. It’s completely disrespectful.”

“I fear that the same thing that befell at Eccles will occur here and there’ll be skeletons on the shore. I’d be disgusted by that.”

A Soldier's Resting Place in Peril

Along the coast is situated the burial plot of a former paratrooper killed while serving abroad. His parent said she could not sleep after discovering her child's grave might one day be relocated.

“It truly disturb me to consider this may not remain his permanent home,” she said. “For us it’s an important place to go.”

In her view, new interments should stop but says it is premature to disturb current plots. “My preference for now is to take no action and closely monitor, but an early decision needs to be made when a tipping point has been attained.”

Seeking Answers and Clarity

An absence of consensus over when and how to tackle the challenge has left grieving relatives feeling frustrated and anxious.

Several families want additional coastal protections to slow the unavoidable loss and to permit burials to proceed for now. Others contend the moment for moving graves is drawing near.

“The situation is very emotive,” said one relative. “The official study was thorough, but now there’s uncertainty about how it is implemented. And everybody is washing their hands over who is responsible.”

A coastal manager confirmed the burial sites were under the care of the local diocese. “Ultimately it is up to them to choose the path to take. Our role is here to help support them through that journey with communities.”

It was also stated there was time to weigh all the options. “We are talking many years before it begins getting lost.”

“There is no common view on what should happen yet. We need productive community discussions to discover the right answers for each community.”

The prospect of the loss of the historic sites was described as one of “immense sorrow for the area,” but church representatives also spoke of a belief in resurrection, offering a spiritual viewpoint on the temporal loss of hallowed earth.