GRAVE concerns have been expressed over the amount of space remaining at Peebles Cemetery for burying the dead.

Cemeteries reaching capacity has become a UK-wide problem, but for the Royal Burgh it has been a concern on the agenda for the last decade.

Peebles Community Councillor Allan MacKenzie has repeatedly raised his concerns at the town’s graveyard running out of burial space.

And with no land procured for another cemetery, the question of where bereaved families will bury their loved ones remains unanswered.

“About nine and a half year ago I was told there was plenty availability for the next ten years.” said Mr MacKenzie.

“Well by my mathematics we’ve got half a year left. There is still some space, but there are certain cemeteries in Scotland that are at capacity now and have no procured land for another cemetery. Does it not make sense to procure land somewhere?”

Community councillor and convenor of the planning sub-committee Les Turnbull, said he raised the concern of cemetery capacity in his response to the Main Issues Report which is a forerunner for the next Local Development Plan.

He said: “I stated that we’ve been raising this for a number of years and we have no resolution. The situation is becoming critical and will become even more critical if we have more major developments in the town.”

Chairman Lawrie Hayworth added: “We are formally feeding into the planning process that there has been no identified further provision for cemeteries, and the cemetery that we have is nearing capacity.

“It’s been flagged for a number of years that it is an issue and is going to continue to be an issue. Can we please have a response from the planning department as to how we as a community can have a suitable cemetery?”

Mr Hayworth added that there has been a societal change with cremation taking some pressure off traditional burial grounds.

Members of the community council were told that it is Scottish Borders Council neighbourhood services that identify land for burial plots.

Leader of the Council Shona Haslam added: “There is work ongoing to identify land for cemeteries throughout the Scottish Borders. I’m not entirely sure when Peebles Cemetery does reach capacity, but I am happy to go back and check that.

"I don’t think it is six months, I think it is probably longer than that as the cemetery was extended.”

The maintenance of the children’s section of the cemetery was raised as a concern last month.

Community Councillors say it is a “gloomy” with overgrown trees and is covered in bird droppings.

Last week Mr Turnbull told members that he recently visited the cemetery and it was “disgraceful”.

“I know there was a notice put out to say that Estates were going to go around making the cemeteries safe. I hope it has been tidied up since I was there because it was awful. It looked as though they had been taking stones down and leaving them lying, and there was bits of rubble all over the place. It was a complete and utter mess.”

Councillor Haslam replied: “They go around and test them and if they are unsafe they are supposed to lay them carefully on the ground with the inscription facing up the way. If required they will fence off any that are very dangerous that they are unable to lay down. I will certainly check it has been done properly.”