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Families of people buried in resting places vulnerable to coastal erosion state that indecision over how to tackle the problem is creating unnecessary distress about the eternal homes of their loved ones.

An Impending Threat to Ancient Churchyards

The council have identified three burial grounds in the villages of Happisburgh, Mundesley, and Trimingham as being at risk of being swallowed by the ocean in the coming decades.

A recent report on the situation details a series of possible actions, from taking no action to disinterring bodies and relocating them in safer locations. Authorities maintain it is for the community to determine how to proceed.

“At the moment we’re in limbo. It causes me distress. My parents intended this to serve as their last home, but it won't be because of the sea.”

Estimates indicate at least a portion of one graveyard could fall into the sea in the next 80 years, but some locals worry it will happen much sooner. “I think it’s got under 20 years, if you consider what’s happened in the last 30 years,” one said.

Haunted by the Ghosts of Eccles

One resident remembered a childhood visit to the nearby settlement of Eccles, which has largely disappeared into the sea, along with its place of worship and burial ground.

“You could see human remains,” she said. “Certain people hold this idealized notion that people’s remains will just get carried away to sea. They won’t. Individuals will collect remains as souvenirs and go grave robbing in search of treasures. That is completely disrespectful.”

“I fear that the same thing that befell at Eccles will happen at Happisburgh and there’ll be skeletons on the shore. I would feel appalled by that.”

A Paratrooper's Resting Place in Peril

Further up the coast lies the burial plot of a ex-soldier who died while working abroad. His mother said she could not sleep after discovering her son’s final plot might one day be relocated.

“It does trouble me to think this may not remain his permanent resting place,” she said. “To our family it’s an important place to go.”

She believes, new interments should cease but says it is premature to exhume existing graves. “What I would choose for now is to do nothing and watch carefully, but an timely resolution needs to be made when a critical moment has been reached.”

Seeking Solutions and Clarity

An absence of consensus over the timing and method to handle the problem has resulted in bereaved families feeling exasperated and worried.

Some want additional sea defences to delay the inevitable erosion and to permit funerals to continue for now. Others argue the moment for relocation is approaching.

“The situation is very emotive,” said one relative. “The council’s report was really good, but now there’s uncertainty about how it is taken forward. And all parties is washing their hands over who is accountable.”

A coastal manager said the graveyards were under the care of the church authorities. “In the end it is up to them to decide the path to take. We are here to help support them through that process with communities.”

It was also stated there was ample time to consider all the choices. “This concerns many years before it begins getting lost.”

“Currently, there exists no common view on what should be done yet. We need good local conversations to find the right answers for each village.”

The prospect of the loss of the historic sites was labeled one of “profound sadness for the local community,” but faith leaders also referenced a belief in life after death, providing a spiritual viewpoint on the physical disappearance of hallowed earth.