Abbey Lane Cemetery: Distress as flooding means Sheffield families can only reach graves 'with wellies'

A number of plots on Abbey Lane Cemetery can now only be reached ‘with wellies’ after several rainstorms in the past two weeks. The Star understands the problem began around November 12 and standing water has still not drained away.

Families are shared their distress and are demanding to know what Sheffield City Council will do to clear the flooding and prevent it from happening again. The council says it is “working hard” to drain the area.

Liz Chinn, aged 37, from Heeley, told The Star she and her family were upset to find the flooding during a visit to her brother Tommy’s grave on Sunday, November 20. Her mother, Marian Bagshaw, said the cemetery “is like a duck pond”.

Liz said: “Tommy’s grave was not so badly affected but there were other families there whose family graves were totally surrounded by water. You needed wellies if you wanted to reach them.

“Tommy died in 2021. Obviously, his grave is quite new. I imagine for other families who have graves that are quite new the grief is still very raw, and this would be quite a shock. We visit every Sunday. It was quite a shock when we found it.”

Sheffield City Council says it found the cemetery had “a very high water table” during a survey carried out in the past decade. Works were reportedly carried out to reduce the chance of this happening, and the authority arranged for burials not to go ahead in the worst affected parts of the cemetery. Despite this, heavy rain seen in the last fortnight have flooded the graveyard.

Councillor Richard Williams, Chairman of the Parks Committee, said: “We understand how distressing this must be to those affected and we are working hard to address the issue. We have had an emergency drainage team on site to make sure the drains are not blocked and to remove any encroaching tree roots.

“We are now seeking further advice about how to resolve the issue as quickly as possible, and what can be done to reduce the risk of standing water in the future.”