Vandalism in the cemetery

Stroud Town Council has condemned vandalism in the cemetery in Bisley Road.

At least 15 memorial stones have been damaged in the old cemetery, which is now a nature reserve and rarely used for burials. Many stones at the site date back to the Victorian period when the Chapel of Rest was built.

"Such desecration of a cemetery is an insult to those who are buried there and a huge disappointment to the Town Council which is responsible for the care of the site," said Town Clerk Helen Bojaniwska.

"We are currently assessing the damage and, at the moment, sadly have no idea of how we will secure funding to repair the memorials. These are historic graves and it will prove challenging to trace living relatives.

The Town Council would urge anyone with information about this damage to contact the police quoting incident 83 of 30 April at https://www.gloucestershire.police.uk/tua/tell-us-about/cor/tell-us-about-existing-case-report/

Information can also be submitted by calling 101 with the same incident number.