Cemetery charging relatives for VIP passes to visit loved-ones' graves sparks outrage

A cemetery has come under fire after it announced it will start charging bereaved relatives for a VIP pass to visit their loved ones' graves.

At the Garden of Remembrance in Longton, near Stoke, notices appeared that said from 1 January, the cemetery will only be open to non-VIP pass-holders from 9am to 3pm Monday to Friday.

Those who want to visit outside of these opening hours can buy a one-off VIP pass and it will be £5 per person to visit a grave or cremation pot and £10 for a visit to their rose garden.

The Garden of Remembrance first opened in 2005 and is described as a "unique" independently-owned cemetery.

A notice on the grounds, as reported by Stoke-on-Trent Live, read: "From January 2025, this site will be protected by electric gates. The gates at the front of the site will open and close automatically at set times.

"Entrance to the cemetery will be via a VIP pass making the site secure for our staff, families and visitors. Please ensure you have your pass in good time for the New Year. For visitors who do not have a VIP pass, access to the cemetery will be between the office hours of 9am to 3pm Monday to Friday only," a second notice read.

"Please note, there will be no access at the weekend, on bank holidays, or any other dates when the office is closed. Thank you for your co-operation."

Following this news, Jode Bourne, whose father Mark is buried in the cemetery expressed her anger to StokeonTrent Live: “Now I need to pay a membership fee to visit my dad’s grave. This is an absolute disgrace. Shame on you Garden of Remembrance.”

But the cemetery's owner Jason Taft has since defended the decision but also said there was some incorrect information on the notices.

Taft also said has spent £8,000 on increasing security and gave out 90 free passes too.

He explained that the cemetery - which has over 1,300 graves - is currently open from 9am to 5pm in winter and 9am to 7pm in summer every day. VIP pass holders will be able to stay until 9pm.

“There are 1,300 graves there and we could not send that many keys out so people can come and get a card if they want one,” Taft told the publication.

“We are not locking people out and this gives them access to the cemetery until 9pm when we would normally be closed."

Taft added: "People can know it’s safe when they’re visiting and they’ll be safe from undesirables breaking in now. The key cards are not coming into force until 1 January because people wouldn’t be happy if we did it before Christmas."

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