Harrogate Borough Council to provide burial space in Pateley Bridge ‘for next 300 years’

Councillor Graham Swift, the council’s cabinet member for resources, enterprise and economic development, approved this week a purchase of £32,500 for 1.03 ha (2.56 acres) of land from Pateley Bridge Town Council.

A council report warned the cemetery, which offer views over the village of Greenhow and towards upper Nidderdale, has just two years of burial space left before it’s full.

But after the sale goes ahead it will now mean families in Nidderdale will be able to bury their loved ones in Pateley Bridge for generations to come.

The report added that the council considered demolishing a garage within the site but this would have only freed up land for another five years of burial space.

The cemetery opened in 1874 and has over 950 memorials.

It’s divided into two areas — one for Church of England burials and another for burials of people from other faiths.

A cremated remains section opened in 1969.

The report concluded: “The current cemetery at Pateley Bridge is near capacity and acquisition of the additional site, will provide land for traditional burials, woodland burials and cremated remains for over 300 years should the site be fully developed for this purpose.

“The cemetery at Pateley Bridge is soon to reach capacity and a solution for its longer term use needs to be established.

"Colleagues in the bereavement services team have identified an area of land next to the cemetery for possible expansion which would provide burial space for over 300 years.”