Strensall and Towthorpe Parish Council: Further controversy over Jamie Bucknell gravestone (From York Press)

Strensall and Towthorpe Parish Council: Further controversy over Jamie Bucknell gravestone

8:09am Saturday 14th October 2006

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"It's nearly five years since we lost Jamie, but things like this give us such a knock back."

A FAMILY involved in a heart-breaking battle over their son's headstone have been told to remove precious keepsakes from his grave.

"It’s nearly five years since we lost Jamie, but things like this give us such a knock back."

Debbie Bucknell

Teenager Jamie Bucknell died from a heart attack caused by an undetected heart defect in November 2001.

His parents, Keith and Debbie, had to change their plans for his headstone twice, after parish councilors refused their pleas for a photo-plaque of Jamie - who died at the age of only 14 - to be placed on the gravestone. Strensall and Towthorpe Parish Council also objected to a heart with an arrow through it containing the name of Jamie's girlfriend, Helen.

The family eventually reached a compromise and Jamie's headstone was put up at Strensall and Towthorpe Cemetery in April 2002. It shows an etching of Jamie's face, a heart, without the arrow, and a pair of football boots.

But now his parents say they are upset after signs went up telling people to remove items from gravestones.

And they believe the ruling means they must remove a cherub, from Jamie's aunt, and several lanterns, placed there by family and friends.

Mrs Bucknell said: "There was a notice up in the cemetery in April saying that relatives had to remove things from graves.

"Nobody did anything about it, and then this week another notice appeared saying if items weren't removed, they'd remove them.

"My husband and I have been really, really upset by it.

"We've been absolutely distraught this week. I know it's nearly five years since we lost Jamie, but it's still really hard and things like this give us such a knock back.

"We're not going to remove anything ourselves.

"When you lose a child, you want to leave things, as you want to feel as though you're still taking care of your child."

Mrs Bucknell claimed the notice stated that items had to be removed to allow the grass to be cut at the graveyard.

But she said: "We take a strimmer down to cut the grass around Jamie's grave ourselves every week.

"Like a lot of people, we've raised his grave up a bit, because when it rains, the cemetery floods easily, and we didn't want Jamie laid in water."

The Bucknells contacted The Press after reading about a villager, Sam Smith's, battle with the parish council over his wife's headstone.

On Thursday, we reported how councillors had objected to the black polished marble headstone Mr Smith had selected, at his late wife's request.

A spokesperson for Strensall Parish Council was unavailable for comment at time of going to press.

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