Anger as Sheffield cemetery becomes “dumping ground” for fly-tippers
A Sheffield cemetery has been described as a “dumping” ground for fly-tippers.
City resident Angela Vaughan, aged 54, told how every week piles of discarded bags of rubbish, dirty nappies, sofas and other sodden furnishings were appearing at Darnall Cemetery – a historical burial place which dates back to1859.
Photos taken during the last couple of weeks by volunteers working to protect the precious burial place show rotten food, plastic bottles and discarded toys scattered over grave stones.
Angela moved away from Darnall aged 14, however she would spend “hours” at the “peaceful” peaceful burial place as a youngster - where many would go to have a quiet moment in days gone by.
Describing the situation, Angela said: “It kills me, it kills us all. I went down in the summer and I just sat and cried. It breaks my heart. Darnall Cemetery at the moment is literally a dumping ground.”
Photographs taken by local residents over the last few days show the scale of the issue.
“People just can’t wait to get out of Darnall - you couldn’t pay us all to go back. These people (the fly-tippers) have no respect for the community.”
Angela and others with connections to the neighbourhood claim to have worked for years to tackle the problem of discarded rubbish.
Efforts to restore the Victorian cemetery to its former glory gained momentum during the pandemic and were spearheaded by local man Norman Zide, who recruited others to help clear litter, maintain paths and even put artificial flowers on graves.
However Angela, whose great grandmother Minnie Turner is buried at the cemetery, says more needs to be done to tackle the problem.
It has been reported to Sheffield Council and she has turned to Sheffield South East MP Clive Betts to help solve the problem.
MP Clive Betts said he was in the process of arranging a meeting with the Friends of Darnall Cemetery group to understand what the issues were.
Councillor Kurtis Crossthorn, Chair of Communities, Parks and Leisure Committee at Sheffield City Council, said: “Our Bereavement Services team regularly clears up waste of all types in this cemetery. We have been exploring a range of options to try and deter fly-tipping at this location.
“The team reported some waste there recently and when our Environmental Enforcement Team followed this up, they were able to match the waste to an individual. They are now taking enforcement action against that person and will continue to prosecute where they can.”
Litter and fly-tipping can be reported at: https://www.sheffield.gov.uk/pollution-nuisance/fly-tipping-and-litter/report-fly-tipping-public-land
Householder duty of care – what residents need to know to so that they don’t inadvertently become a fly-tipper: