Faculty Jurisdiction – Memorials

Memorials in Churchyards

There is no legal right to place a memorial in a churchyard. Permission must be obtained from the Chancellor of the Diocese, acting on behalf of the Bishop. The normal method of applying for permission would be to apply for a Faculty (see Faculty Jurisdiction). However, this is rarely necessary, because the Chancellor has given authority to the clergy, through the Diocesan Churchyard Regulations, to allow memorials which fall within the guidelines set out in the Regulations. For all those cases falling outside the Regulations, a Faculty will be required, and the statutory faculty petition fee would be payable.

Those wishing to place a memorial in a Churchyard are advised to consult their local Minister before visiting the stonemason and choosing a memorial, so that the Minister can advise as to which types of memorial are appropriate to a particular churchyard, and which can be authorised by the Minister. The Minister can also advise on inscriptions. Further information on the process, and the Churchyard Memorial Application form, is available here.

If, even after discussing a proposed memorial, the applicant wishes to erect a memorial prohibited by the Regulations, a Petition for a Faculty (see Faculty Jurisdiction) will have to be lodged using the completed Memorial Application Form.

Testing of Churchyard Memorials

Ministry of Justice guidance, which may assist PCCs wishing to topple test and repair memorials in their churchyards, is available to view or download: ‘Managing the safety of Burial Ground Memorials: Practical advice for dealing with unstable memorials”. Any testing of memorials in churchyards needs to be approved by Faculty before it is undertaken.

Memorials inside Churches

As a general rule, the erection of memorials inside churches is not normally permitted. Anyone wishing to erect a memorial inside a church must apply for a Faculty, and must satisfy the Chancellor that a departure from the normal rule is justifiable, for example, because the person to be commemorated was a major benefactor of the church, or made some major contribution to the church or parish, or was an important local or national figure, etc.