Memorials Within the Cemeteries

All three of our cemeteries in the District (Maldon, Heybridge & Burnham-on-Crouch) allow a number of memorial ideas including headstones, full kerb sets and memorial trees (please see the memorial regulations). Any memorial stone work carried out in the cemeteries must be registered by NAMM. Reputable stone masons will have this registration but please make sure before committing to any work. Any homemade or non-NAMM registered memorials are strictly prohibited; this is for a number of reasons including health and safety and to ensure the work in our cemeteries is of a high standard, also keeping any danger issues to an absolute minimum for our visitors and wildlife. Please see our regulations page for more information.

Memorials

All memorial applications must be submitted to Maldon District Council for approval.

A minimum of six months is required post interment before any form of memorial is allowed on a full grave. This time is needed to let the ground settle after the interment to reduce the risk of the stone becoming unstable on the ground in the future. Memorials on cremated remains plots are permitted straight after the interment due to the smaller plot and size of the plaque.

During the six month settling period, an application can be made by your memorial mason to us, ready for installation after this point. All applications will need to be submitted to us for approval against the cemeteries regulations. Stone masons will be aware of the regulations and try to stay within these boundaries to make the process as smooth as possible.

There is a memorial wall in Maldon cemetery that houses brass memorial plaques. The plaques can also be added to a hard wood plinth for three years in almost any area in the cemeteries. Once the three-year period is up the plaque is relocated onto the memorial wall for longevity (please see the cemetery and memorial fees for more information).

Heybridge cemetery has dedicated a wall of the in-house chapel to memorial plaques. There are three different size plaques that can be chosen with a personal inscription of your choice (please see memorial regulations). All sizes and prices can be found on the fees and charges page.

Burnham-on-Crouch cemetery does not currently have a memorial wall. However, you are able to use the wall of the chapel for plaques once the shelf life of the plinth has come to an end.

It is solely the owner of the Exclusive Right of Burial (ERB) that can allow any kind of memorial work or adjustments to the grave space. There are no leniencies on this as it is a legal procedure and the ERB certificate must be produced when ordering any memorial work.

As stated in more detail in the cemetery regulations, it is prohibited to leave any memorials outside of the agreed grave space, for example wind chimes and external hanging decorations. These can be a danger to the public and the Parks Team when maintenance needs to be completed. It could also offend any visitors to the cemeteries, if everyone sticks to the regulations the cemetery will look better and be an all-round safe place to visit. This also applies to memorabilia such as teddies, lanterns and vases, these must be kept inside the grave space or they may be removed without prior warning.

Floral Tributes

Floral tributes can be left at the grave side, without any plastic wrapping or degradable materials, as this can be a potential danger to the surrounding animals and wildlife. At present there is no time scale for the length of time flowers can be left but it is at the Council’s discretion to remove any old flowers that have come to the end of their life.

Dimensions for Memorials

Please see below dimensions for memorials within Maldon, Heybridge and Burnham on Crouch cemeteries.