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Family memorial benches to be scrapped at Agecroft Cemetery


Wooden benches bearing the names of loved ones at a Salford cemetery will be removed and taken into storage if the families they belong to can’t be found.

Salford council say notices were posted at Agecroft Cemetery earlier this month in the hope of finding the next of kin or relations of several men immortalised in plaques.

Officials say the seating is in such poor condition that it is unsafe and could cause an accident.

No family members have yet come forward.

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If no-one appears to claim the benches each will be put into storage on Friday 29 April, where their future is uncertain.

Reader Louise Grier spotted the notices after a visit to the cemetery this week and contacted SalfordOnline.com.

“As the owner may not visit so often, this could be removed without their knowledge and cause a lot of upset,” she said.

“I would like to know it was a member of my family.

“It would be nice to make a few more people aware of this and hopefully get back to the owners of these benches.”

Pictures posted on Facebook show two names in particular: James Edward Murphy, who died on 27 July 1967 at the age of 30, and Thomas Love.

In Loving Memory James Edward Murphy - Agecroft Cemetery

Love’s plaque is worn away and a little unclear but Louise believes he was born in either 1926 or 1936 and passed away in 1998.

A spokesman for Salford City Council said: “We have tried to contact the families responsible for installing the benches to discuss repairs but unfortunately we no longer have up to date contacts for them.

“We have had notices on them for several weeks in the hope of reaching any younger family members visiting the cemetery but no-one has, as yet, come forward.

“The benches are now in poor condition and could be unsafe to sit on so we are erring on the side of caution. We will continue to take them into storage and keep them safe in the hope someone contacts us to discuss their future.”

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Tom is SalfordOnline.com's News Editor and community co-ordinator.