Family devastated after grave 'disturbed'

A woman from Crowborough has been left "absolutely devastated" after her parents' grave in Sevenoaks was "disturbed" by the council.

Barbara Kennell was visiting the site when she realised the headstone had been moved, the soil had been trampled and plants removed.

Her daughter, Jan Carmichael, said her mother was "very distressed" and was unwilling to return to the grave until it was fixed.

Sevenoaks Town Council apologised to the family, but added that "the headstone was deemed unsafe and needed to be laid flat on the plot because of instability".

Ms Carmichael contacted the council asking why the "disrespectful" incident had happened "without warning".

"This grave was as sturdy as a rock," she said.

She added that her mother, who has looked after the grave since 1994 and never had an issue with the site before, was particularly upset that the council had "started desecrating the plants on top of the grave".

The council said it had tried to contact Ms Kennell with information about their plans but said they did not have the correct details as "unfortunately, the family did not update records".

"We hope that we can help them with the process of restoring the plot to its former condition and the headstone to a safe position", a council spokesperson said.

"The gravestone was approached from the side with a mechanical digger to facilitate the removal of the high growing shrubs.

"The headstone was then repositioned onto the grave space."

The family said it will be "taking this further" if the matter is not resolved.

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