Bristol residents have been defying the council-enforced cemetery closures after the government said they should be reopened to the public.
Cemeteries are currently open for funerals and burials only, with Bristol City Council locking gates to keep out everyone, including residents who want to pay their respects and leave flowers for loved ones.
Earlier this month, the local authority closed Arnos Vale, Canford, Brislington, Greenbank, Henbury, Ridgeway Park, Shirehampton and South Bristol cemeteries and limited funerals to just 10 mourners out of fear people will use the sites for exercise during the ongoing lockdown.
Posters are also up at all of the cemeteries asking residents to be considerate and not to enter the sites.
The council previously said government guidance has not changed since it shut its cemeteries, despite a government minister saying during a daily coronavirus briefing last weekend they should be reopened.
Now it appears people are defying the closures, with pictures taken by one resident on Friday (April 24) showing some people entering Greenbank Cemetery in Easton through gaps in the fence.
Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick previously said he had instructed local authorities to keep graveyards open during the coronavirus pandemic.
The government minister had said: “For clarity, funerals can go ahead with close family present.
“I’m also asking councils to keep open or indeed to reopen cemeteries and graveyards for people to make that private visit and seek solace at the grave of someone you’ve loved or to privately lay flowers.”
A Bristol City Council spokesman said on Friday (April 24): "Following a change in government guidance in the wake of a letter from the Minister of Local Government, the council is considering its position."
