The Local Authorities' Cemeteries Order 1977

Registration of burials and disinterments

11.—(1) A burial authority shall maintain a register of all burials in a cemetery in a book or books provided for the purpose.

(2) Any book provided after the coming into operation of this order shall be of good and durable paper and be strongly bound. If such a book is the second or any subsequent one to be provided it shall be numbered.

(3) The pages in which entries are to be made in any book provided after the coming into operation of this order shall be numbered and shall be printed in columns, including columns headed—

Number/Date of burial/Names in full/Age/Address/Grave or vault number/Other particulars/Signature of person directing or making entry,

and in entry spaces of such uniform depth as the burial authority shall consider sufficient:

Provided that in a book provided within the 12 months following the coming into operation of this order—

(a) the numbers of the pages need not be printed but if not printed shall be entered in manuscript throughout the book before it is brought into use;

(b) the headings of any column of a page may be altered in manuscript so as to comply with this paragraph; and

(c) the column headed “Other particulars” may be omitted.

(4) (a) As soon as is reasonably practical after any burial in the cemetery the officer of the burial authority appointed for that purpose shall, in durable black ink, number an entry space in the register and enter the burial therein.

(b) Where the burial is that of the body of a still-born child or of the cremated remains thereof the words “Still-born child of” with the names of both or one of the parents shall be written in the column headed “Names in full”, the column headed “Age” shall be left blank and the address of the parents or parent shall be entered in the column headed “Address”.

(c) Where the burial is the interment of cremated remains the entry shall record that it is such.

(d) Where the burial is the re-interment of disinterred remains the entry shall record that it is such and the previous place of burial.

(e) Subject to (b) to (d) the burial shall be entered in accordance with the headings to the columns.

(5) A burial authority shall maintain a record of any disinterments in a cemetery made after the coming into operation of this order, showing—

(a) the date of disinterment;

(b) the number of the grave or vault;

(c) the names, in full, of the person whose remains are disinterred;

(d) the book, page and entry number of the entry of burial;

(e) particulars of the authority for disinterment; and

(f) if the remains are re-interred in the same cemetery, the number of the grave and the date of re-interment; or

(g) if the remains are to be re-interred elsewhere or cremated, the place and date of proposed re-interment or cremation.

(6) As soon as is reasonably practical after any disinterment, the officer of the burial authority appointed for the purpose shall complete the record as regards items (a) to (e) and (g) in paragraph (5) and add to the entry in the register of burials, in durable ink of a colour readily distinguishable from black, a reference to such record. As soon as is reasonably practical after a re-interment in the same cemetery, the said officer shall complete the record as regards item (f) in paragraph (5).

(7) Registers of burials and records of disinterments shall at all reasonable times be available for inspection by any person free of charge.

(8) A burial authority may charge such fees as they think proper for the making by them of searches in, and the provision of certified copies of entries in, a register of burials or a record of disinterments.