Britain’s top undertaker backs calls to recycle grave plots

The UK’s biggest undertaker has lined up behind a proposal to recycle abandoned grave plots to alleviate London’s burial site crisis.

Dignity, which has about 780 funeral homes across the country, today told the Standard it backs long-standing calls from industry groups to reclaim old burial plots.

UK law hinders the reuse of graves but the policy is under review. Groups like the Institute of Cemetery and Crematorium Management, insurer Royal London and the Natural Death Centre have led calls for graves to be reclaimed.

Around 90% of Londoners chose to be cremated, partly due to a lack of space in the capital and the high costs of burial.

Local authorities are also facing huge cost pressure to maintain old cemeteries no longer in use.

“The rules would have to be defined but reusing old plots is definitely viable,” Dignity chief executive Mike McCollum said. “It’s something we would support. Burial issues are acute in London.”

A drop in the number of UK deaths reduced first quarter profits at Dignity after about 20,000 fewer people died in the first 13 weeks of the year compared to last year. This reduced underlying operating profits to £31.1 million from £35.8 million.