AN ANGRY mum has hit out at the local council for asking her to remove toys from her baby son's grave.

Twenty-seven-year-old Joanne Townsend was left upset and angry by a letter from Hyndburn Council asking her remove cup hooks fitted to her son's headstone on which the toys _ two small teddy bears - hang.

The letter from Mr Steve Todd, head of environmental health, pointed out that the toys and cup hooks were in breach of cemetery regulations.

The grave of her son Jordan Lee, who died on July 10, 1996, when just four days old, lies in the Infant Memorial Garden at Accrington Cemetery.

Parents are allowed to place small toys at the head of the grave on the concrete foundations but many of the graves have had the cup hooks fitted to the headstones on which to hang favourite toys and some graves have toys arranged in small garden areas.

Joanne feels the letter, which has been sent to nine other parents, was totally unnecessary.

She said: "A lot of people bring toys to the memorial garden, as there are only babies and children buried here. It hurts to be told to remove Jordan's toys from his grave.

"It is my headstone after all and just because it is on the council's private ground they should not have the right to be making these requests. They haven't even given a reason why, and I am not the only one who brings toys to the garden."

In the letter, Mr Todd said: "Whilst appreciating the sensitivity of this issue, the council has to have a balanced view which takes into account the wishes of all those using the Infant Memorial Garden.

"I am therefore asking those grave owners who have placed fittings on the headstones to remove them and in addition give consideration to reducing the number of toys where these could be excessive or in poor condition." Mr Todd told the Citizen: "The council's cemetery regulations help the council to maintain all the graves to a high standard. It was drawn to our attention by other people who use the cemetery that some graves have an enormous number of toys hanging from the headstone, when toys should be placed at the head of the grave on the foundations.

"I have asked grave owners to remove cup hooks where they have toys hanging. Where there are excessive amounts of toys, the garden looks unsightly.

"I am asking grave owners to move the toys or some of them, and to contact me if they wish to discuss the matter.

"I have not asked people definitively to remove toys, but to consider reducing the number of toys they take to the memorial garden."

Councillor Leonard Dickinson, chairman of the environmental cervices committee responsible for cemeteries, said: "We allow a small number of toys to be placed at the base of the grave.

"People have been attaching hooks to graves and hanging toys off them which is against regulations, and I do not think it's unreasonable to ask parents to remove the toys which are hanging from hooks on grave stones."

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