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Council is seeking community feedback on the recent NSW Government’s Cemetery Reform that has impacted its ability to provide new burial opportunities within the region’s active rural cemeteries.
At it’s Ordinary Meeting held 16 October 2024, Council resolved in part to temporarily suspend further reservations to the region’s six active rural cemeteries until it determined an outcome following public consultation, and to commence consultation with village groups concerning the possible closure of selected rural cemeteries within the Bathurst Region for future reservations.
The NSW Cemetery Reforms have resulted in a number of statutory and regulatory impositions that cemetery operators are now required to comply with, causing significant financial burden, which Council is not able to fund, or physically be able to administer. In addition, due to the age of the Region’s Cemeteries, there are many grave sites that are not able to be identified, creating concerns on the ability to safely find sites that do not already contain burial remains. The NSW Cemetery Reforms have resulted in the following issues for Council:-
the significant concerns in respect to the ability to positively identify unused vacant burial plots in many of the Region’s rural cemeteries,
the significant costs that would be required to survey the existing cemetery sites and develop formal burial spaces, noting that it will be difficult to determine free unused space at many cemeteries, and
the State Governments establishment of the new Cemetery regulatory requirements governing NSW cemetery operations, which Council does not have the physical or financial resources to enact or comply with.
The full report informing of the extent of the Cemetery reforms, the additional requirements that would be imposed on Council to legally operate the region’s rural cemeteries, and the anticipated costs that Council does not have funding for that would need to be sourced, can be found in the Document Library.
Council is seeking comment from residents within the rural community on this important issue.
Submissions can be submitted via the feedback form below or can be sent to The General Manager, Bathurst Regional Council, PMB 17, Bathurst NSW 2795, or council@bathurst.nsw.gov.au.
Submissions will be received up until 10am Tuesday, 3 December 2024
Council is seeking community feedback on the recent NSW Government’s Cemetery Reform that has impacted its ability to provide new burial opportunities within the region’s active rural cemeteries.
At it’s Ordinary Meeting held 16 October 2024, Council resolved in part to temporarily suspend further reservations to the region’s six active rural cemeteries until it determined an outcome following public consultation, and to commence consultation with village groups concerning the possible closure of selected rural cemeteries within the Bathurst Region for future reservations.
The NSW Cemetery Reforms have resulted in a number of statutory and regulatory impositions that cemetery operators are now required to comply with, causing significant financial burden, which Council is not able to fund, or physically be able to administer. In addition, due to the age of the Region’s Cemeteries, there are many grave sites that are not able to be identified, creating concerns on the ability to safely find sites that do not already contain burial remains. The NSW Cemetery Reforms have resulted in the following issues for Council:-
the significant concerns in respect to the ability to positively identify unused vacant burial plots in many of the Region’s rural cemeteries,
the significant costs that would be required to survey the existing cemetery sites and develop formal burial spaces, noting that it will be difficult to determine free unused space at many cemeteries, and
the State Governments establishment of the new Cemetery regulatory requirements governing NSW cemetery operations, which Council does not have the physical or financial resources to enact or comply with.
The full report informing of the extent of the Cemetery reforms, the additional requirements that would be imposed on Council to legally operate the region’s rural cemeteries, and the anticipated costs that Council does not have funding for that would need to be sourced, can be found in the Document Library.
Council is seeking comment from residents within the rural community on this important issue.
Submissions can be submitted via the feedback form below or can be sent to The General Manager, Bathurst Regional Council, PMB 17, Bathurst NSW 2795, or council@bathurst.nsw.gov.au.
Submissions will be received up until 10am Tuesday, 3 December 2024
