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Families whose relatives laid to rest in graves vulnerable to shoreline retreat say that a lack of decision over how to address the problem is causing them unnecessary distress about the eternal homes of their departed family.

A Looming Danger to Historic Churchyards

Local authorities have identified three burial grounds in the communities of Happisburgh, Trimingham, and Mundesley as being at risk of being swallowed by the sea in the next few generations.

A newly published study on the issue sets out a series of possible actions, from taking no action to exhuming remains and relocating them in more secure locations. Authorities maintain it is for local people to decide how to move forward.

“Right now we’re in a state of uncertainty. It causes me distress. My parents wanted this to be their last home, but it won't be because of the encroaching sea.”

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

Haunted by the Past

A local business owner remembered a school trip to the nearby village of Eccles, which has largely vanished into the water, including its place of worship and burial ground.

“It was possible to see human remains,” she said. “Some have this romantic idea that people’s remains will just get washed out to sea. They won’t. People will collect remains as mementos and go plundering graves looking for valuables. That is completely undignified.”

“I fear that the identical fate that happened at Eccles will happen at Happisburgh and there’ll be bones on the beach. I’d be appalled by that.”

A Paratrooper's Grave in Peril

Along the coast is situated the burial plot of a former paratrooper who died while serving abroad. His mother said she could not sleep after learning her child's grave might one day be relocated.

“It truly trouble me to consider this may not remain his lasting resting place,” she said. “To our family it’s an important site to visit.”

She believes, new burials should stop but says it is premature to disturb current plots. “What I would choose for now is to do nothing and closely monitor, but an early decision needs to be made when a tipping point has been reached.”

Seeking Answers and Certainty

The lack of agreement over the timing and method to handle the challenge has left bereaved families feeling frustrated and worried.

Some are calling for more sea defences to slow the unavoidable loss and to allow funerals to continue for now. Others contend the time for moving graves is approaching.

“The situation is very emotive,” said one relative. “The official study was thorough, but now there’s confusion about how it is taken forward. And everybody is avoiding responsibility over who is responsible.”

A local official confirmed the graveyards were owned and managed of the local diocese. “In the end it is up to them to decide the direction to take. Our role is here to assist them through that journey with communities.”

He added there was time to consider all the choices. “We are talking decades before it starts to be lost.”

“Currently, there exists no common view on what should happen yet. We need productive local conversations to discover the appropriate solutions for each village.”

The possibility of losing the historic sites was described as one of “profound sorrow for the area,” but faith leaders also spoke of a doctrine in resurrection, providing a spiritual perspective on the temporal disappearance of sacred ground.