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Loved ones of people laid to rest in resting places vulnerable to coastal erosion argue that a lack of decision over how to tackle the problem is creating avoidable anguish about the eternal homes of their loved ones.

An Impending Threat to Ancient Churchyards

The council have singled out three church graveyards in the communities of Happisburgh, Trimingham, and Mundesley as being at risk of being engulfed by the ocean in the coming decades.

A recent report on the situation details a series of possible actions, from doing nothing to disinterring bodies and relocating them in more secure sites. Officials maintain it is for the community to decide how to proceed.

“Right now we’re in a state of uncertainty. It upsets me. They wanted this to be their last home, but it won't be because of the encroaching sea.”

Projections suggest at least a portion of one churchyard could fall into the waves in the next 80 years, but some residents worry it will happen much sooner. “In my view it’s got less than 20 years, if you consider what’s occurred in the last 30 years,” one said.

Troubled by the Past

A local business owner recalled a childhood visit to the nearby settlement of Eccles, which has almost entirely disappeared into the sea, 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 sea. They won’t. Individuals will take bones as mementos and go grave robbing in search of treasures. It’s completely undignified.”

“I fear that the identical fate that befell at Eccles will occur here and there’ll be skeletons on the beach. I’d be disgusted by that.”

A Soldier's Resting Place in Jeopardy

Further up the coast is situated the burial plot of a former paratrooper killed while working abroad. His parent said she could not sleep after discovering her son’s final plot might one day be moved.

“It does disturb me to think this won’t be his lasting home,” she said. “For us it’s an significant place to go.”

She believes, new burials should stop but says it is premature to disturb current plots. “What I would choose for now is to do nothing and closely monitor, but an timely resolution must be made when a tipping point has been reached.”

Seeking Solutions and Clarity

The lack of agreement over the timing and method to tackle the challenge has left bereaved families feeling exasperated and worried.

Several families are calling for more coastal protections to delay the inevitable erosion and to allow burials to continue for now. Different voices argue the time for relocation is approaching.

“The situation is very emotional,” a family member stated. “The official study was thorough, but now there’s confusion about how it is taken forward. And everybody is avoiding responsibility over who is responsible.”

A local official said the graveyards 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 residents.”

It was also stated there was ample time to consider all the choices. “We are talking decades before it begins getting lost.”

“There is no common view on what should be done yet. We need productive local conversations to discover the right solutions for each community.”

The prospect of the loss of the churches and graveyards was labeled one of “profound sorrow for the area,” but faith leaders also spoke of a doctrine in resurrection, providing a theological perspective on the temporal loss of sacred ground.