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A public meeting is being held at Dewsbury Minster to discuss growing concerns around the lack of burial spaces within the town.

Dewsbury Cemetery Action Group has issued an open invite to members of the public, Kirklees Council, local councillors and community leaders to attend the meeting on Saturday, March 11, 4pm to 6pm.

Concerns have been raised over the last few months whereby campaigners have estimated that space at Dewsbury Cemetery - which is used by all faiths within the community - would run out within two years, as opposed to the council’s belief that there are over 1,000 spaces available which would “last for a number of years.”

Ahead of Saturday’s meeting, Mohammed Javed, who is the chair of Dewsbury Cemetery Action Group, which is made up of funeral directors, Imams, reverends and solicitors, said:

Mohammed Javed, chair of Dewsbury Cemetery Action Group, seen here with Christine Leeman.

“We have still got real concerns which is why we have called this meeting to notify the public where we are as a group.

“It will be informative as well as questions and is open to everybody. It is for community members to come and for them to give us their views and feedback in terms of how and what we should be doing as a community going forward.

“We have asked the vicars, deans, funeral directors, mosques, churches, professionals like solicitors, people from the community, Eric Box - a wide spectrum of people.

“We have also invited the councillors and Kirklees to come to the public meeting because we don’t want them alienated and feeling that it is something in isolation. If they have got any updates, or want to share transparency, then it is a great forum because it is multi-faith and non-faith, so everybody is invited. There is no hidden agenda and everything is on the table.

“We want to make sure that, as a group, we are not going off on a tangent on our own and trying to be keyboard warriors. We want to take the public in confidence, listen to their feedback and their concerns to take the steps, together as a community, that we need to take to make things happen.

“We are more than happy to work with Kirklees and the council to make that happen. We need to find a solution.

“It’s a great chance for Kirklees, the councillors and the cemetery people to give an update to the public.”

Dewsbury burial spaces: Open invite to public conference

“We have asked the vicars, deans, funeral directors, mosques, churches, professionals like solicitors, people from the community, Eric Box - a wide spectrum of people.