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Superintendent Neil Stacey had originally told Jo that the circuit meeting needs to revisit both decisions on w hether to retain the burial ground or sell it on a long leasehold and t he extent of the closure of the graveyard.īut now a statement from the Methodist Church has said the burial ground is going to be sold and a circuit meeting on June 20 will decide whether residents will be allowed to reserve plots for future burials - and whether such reservations are a condition of the sale. "I'm worried the headstones won't be protected during potential building works, they are so close to the chapel, we need to be assured they won't be damaged," said Jo.

The headstones on some of the graves are just yards away from the Chapel itself - a worrying sign for residents. The site is very complex and contains two entrances to the graveyard. The building is expected to sell for £98,000 but it is not yet known whether the graveyard will be retained or included within the sale on a 999-year-lease. The burial ground at Huxley Methodist Chapel is up for sale This includes 15 members, including Graham's dad and uncle, and two other relatives - Pat and Rita Lee - who want to be buried with their late husbands. Three generations of the Lee family are buried in the graveyard, dating back to 1875. The chapel, which is run by the Chester and Delamere Forest Trust circuit of the Methodist Church, closed in 2014 for church purposes but the graveyard is still in use. "The auction sign went up on April 30 and that was the first we were aware of it." "It was a shock when we saw the for sale sign, especially to our family, we were devastated. "How can you sell something when there are still people wanting to be buried?" said Jo Copping, who lives with husband Graham Lee and their son Max. The Copping and Lee family, who live in the village, are battling for answers ahead of the new sale date on July 15 and the closure of the burial ground on June 12. Huxley Methodist Chapel and its graveyard, in Huxley village, was due to be auctioned off on June 3 but now the sale has been set back after residents stated 'they were left in the dark'.įamilies, whose loved ones are buried in the graveyard, fear the new owners could one day remove the headstones, exhume the bodies and build on the land. A Cheshire family have been left in limbo following the planned sale of the only church in their village.
