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BROCKLANDS |
Woodland Burial |
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BROCKLANDS |
Woodland Burial |
In the last 2 to 3 years we've noticed a sudden increase in the number of burials here, with more families coming to us saying 'we came to so-and-so's burial in the summer and liked the place', or 'we came and looked a couple of years ago and decided this was the place for us'. More local families have been coming to Brocklands - I suppose after 7 years we are now part of the 'local map' and an increasing number of people know someone who has been buried here. In 2007 we had on average just over 1 burial a fortnight ( which is a lot for a small site which also runs a farm!); this has been our busiest year yet.
With over 120 burials to date and a similar number of prepurchased plots, our main objective this year is to gain Planning Permission to extend the site into another 2 or 3 acres of the Brockland's field. With the access track and car park already in place, this hopefully won't be too difficult to achieve.
The Haybarn has proved invaluable for services, and very popular for teas. Families have been able to create their own personal ceremonies, using music, photographic displays, flowers - being led by the family themselves, by a priest or by a humanist celebrant. The Haybarn will continue to be available for ceremonies as before. Unfortunately the teas had become a victim of their own success, with numbers of people coming often being more than expected, thereby creating health and safety issues. We tried to put a limit on numbers, but of course it is very difficult to know beforehand how many people will come. In addition our caterer has had to give up for personal reasons, so all things considered we have regrettably decided to stop providing teas for the foreseeable future. However, we are still happy to hire out the room for those who wish to supply their own food and drink, or we can recommend some local pubs and hotels.
In May we had our second Open Day, which was very successful (see previous update).
In July we took part in Settle's 'Going Green' initiative with other local businesses. We had a stand in the market square for a day, with coffins, information and lots of A4 laminated photos on display. The Chamber of Trade is trying to encourage businesses to be more locally-sourced, organic and generally environmentally sound, and to encourage the public to support them. Details can be found on their website www.greensettle.org.uk.
We have done a review of the coffins we supply, and are pleased that the cardboard coffin (after written suggestions from us, though not necessarily just because of that) now comes with rope handles which can bear the weight for carrying, instead of being merely decorative. It is recycled cardboard, of course, with a biodegradable print. We have changed our willow coffin supplier, which accounts for the price increase, but we are still keen to support traditional British skills and businesses, so these coffins are made in Somerset from English willow, and are not from Eastern Europe as many of the cheaper ones are. The new willow coffins come with a coloured willow band woven along the coffin, and you can select a colour of your choice. Our bamboo and pine coffins are as before, with no changes.
We have also reviewed our ashes plots. The burial of ashes has proved more popular than we had originally anticipated, with more and more people buying double ashes plots. Whereas we had been simply reserving two single plots side by side for this, we have decided this is not the best arrangement of plots and also not best for the tree. Our solution is to offer one size of plot for ashes, larger than before, which can be used for the burial of one or two sets of cremated remains. These plots are a better shape and larger size, giving improved growing conditions for the trees. (Please note: only one tree will be planted on each plot even in the case of two burials.)
On 20th May we had our very successful Open Day. It was forecast rain, but the sun shone, and we had a steady flow of visitors from 10 am to after our closing time of 4pm. Our new Haybarn was used to full advantage: we had coffins on display, reference books, a display board with photos of how the site has developed, and, to illustrate our new Funeral Teas option, we had local lady Pam produce a mouthwatering selection of home-baking, which was served free all day. We also had our marquee on the car park, with information handouts and activities for the kids: thanks to Jenny and Bryony for filling-up the nutfeeders, and to all those who did our Nature Trail - winners were Flora Milligan (nesting box), and Jessica Wainwright (nut feeder).
We also had vases with Native bluebells in one, and Spanish/Hybrid bluebells in the other, and information from charity Plantlife on how to tell the difference between the two types. Often planted in gardens, the Spanish have escaped and are cross-pollinating with our native bluebells, literally turning them into the paler, non-scented Spanish variety over time.( We will post more information on this under our Bluebells section, soon).
We had visitors come from as far as Durham and Harrogate, but the chap from Sweden had to be the farthest travelled! The most frequent comment from locals who visited, was that although they had passed the road-end many times, it wasn't until you drove up the track that you realised what a wonderful little hidden world the Brocklands site was: private from the road, but with plenty of parking and fine, far-reaching views across and up the valley! Others, who hadn't been for a few years, couldn't believe how the trees had grown up and changed the aspect of the place.It certainly seemed that a good day was had by all.
Now in our 7th year, we have recently added significantly to the services we are able to offer. Autumn 2006 saw the opening of The Haybarn at the burial site. This is a traditional stone farm building, converted to a high standard, with insulation and double glazing, providing 40 square metres of floor space, fitted carpet, comfortable furnishings, toilet, and modest kitchen area. The toilet facilities will be available for use at every burial - we appreciate that some people will have travelled long distances, or may have been sat in church for a long time.
Families who wish to have a service before the burial may hire it for purposes of commemoration in a warm and private environment, rather than having to stand outside, and be subject to the vagaries of the climate. In addition, it can be hired as a comfortable convenient place for funeral teas. A local caterer has agreed to provide food and drinks for this, or you can hire the room and provide your own refreshment.
This building also provides a useful on-site meeting place for families and individuals to come and see us for an informal chat, to find out more about what we do, or to pre-purchase a plot. We can discuss the options, look at a selection of coffins that we keep here, and then wander out to look at the site itself.
Interest in this new facility has been very positive so far, from families and funeral directors who have used it. It was obviously the right way forward for Brocklands and we are very pleased with the response. Details can be found under 'The Haybarn'. We hope to have an Official Opening of these facilities in Spring 2007.
Back in September 2006 we were delighted to welcome a very special visitor to Brocklands, The Bishop of Bradford. As part of a 'getting to know the parishes' weekend, Bishop David and his wife, Jill, came to see the various activities we do here. We showed them our traditional charcoal kiln, and our sawing and woodchipping facilities. We took them up to the newly-finished Haybarn, where they saw our biodegradable coffins and asked us in detail about the concept of natural burials. We then took them for a stroll round the burial ground. They showed great interest and asked many questions about what we do. |
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| Julia extolling the virtues of biodegradable coffins to Bishop David and Jill, while local parish priest, Rev Peter Yorkstone, looks on | Chris explains the lay-out of the grave area | |