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A WOMAN has received an apology from Hammersmith and Fulham Council after overgrown grass obscured graves where her family are buried at Mortlake Cemetery.
Laura Pitcher, who lives in Hanwell, said she was "appalled" when she saw the levels of overgrowth at the cemetery in Richmond.
She said: "I was at the cemetery with my Mother and Aunt last Saturday and we were appalled at the state of it.
"This was of course also very upsetting as we have a lot of graves in several parts of the cemetery.
"We couldn't see one of them as it was covered in grass and wild flowers, which we had to cut away."
"This will also damage the graves in the long term. I understand that some of the areas are very old graves, but this doesn't mean we don't go there and pay our respects.
"We feel very strongly about this as it's a cemetery and not a park. They charge enough for a burial plot and also for opening graves."
She added that at one point she spotted a note saying that he grass in the cemetery was being managed to enhance the wildlife and biodiversity of the local environment and that it would remain uncut throughout the summer months.
Councillor Greg Smith, cabinet member for residents' services at Hammersmith and Smith, said: "Overgrown grass on graves is not acceptable and we would like to apologise to Ms Pitcher and her family for any hurt that this may have caused.
"We have already written to Ms Pitcher and addressed her concerns. The council will continue to let the grass grow in areas of the cemetery that do not have graves in order to attract wildlife."
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James,
I would just like to comment that a letter of apology has not been received from Councillor Greg Smith.
Regards
Laura Pitcher