A SHERIFF has criticised ministers for failing to provide official guidance over cemetery safety after eight-year-old Ciaran Williamson died after being hit by a headstone.
Ciaran Williamson was critically injured in Craigton Cemetery in Cardonald, Glasgow, on 26 May 2015.
He was playing in the graveyard when a 7ft headstone, erected in the 1920s and referred to as the Ross Memorial, toppled over and landed on him.
Sheriff Linda Ruxton who said the death could have been avoided if safety precautions is to tell the local government minister Kevin Stewart about her call for the Scottish Government to provide local authorities with guidance over the management of safety in cemeteries.
She said in her fatal accident inquiry report: "It is a matter of some surprise that there appears to be no official government guidance to local authorities in Scotland on the management of safety in cemeteries.
"The only existing official guidance appears to be that produced by the Ministry of Justice for England and Wales.
"As memorial safety is a matter that affects councils throughout Scotland and concerns the safety of the Scottish public, I recommend that appropriate advice and guidance be prepared by the Scottish Government.
"Such guidance should include a category of advice on how to inspect large traditional monuments such as the Ross memorial, as distinct from lawn memorials and other smaller structures."
She added: "Given the potential danger posed by large leaning memorials, these should be given special attention and clear guidance issued as to the procedures to be adopted in order to carry out meaningful stability checks to assess whether there is concerning movement associated with such structures."
She said the minister had agreed it would be helpful if the industry guidance were to include a distinct category of large traditional memorials such as the Ross memorial.
The sheriff added: "However, it seems to me that what is required is clear, distinct advice on how to test memorials which are already standing at a lean. These are the memorials which present certain challenges to the tester and for which there should be separate, clear guidance."
The sheriff also called on Glasgow City Council to review its cemetery guidance in the light of the FAI.
She said the guidance replaced the industry-recognised 25 kilogramme pressure test for headstones and monuments with a “minimum force” test which she said "seems vague and still does not address the problems associated with large memorials which are progressively leaning from the vertical position".
The FAI found that Glasgow City Council did not have "an active system of inspection to ensure the safety and stability of memorials".
A Scottish Government spokesman said: “This is such a tragic set of circumstances and our sympathies remain with Ciaran’s family.
“The Scottish Government notes the Sheriff’s recommendations and will consider them carefully. The Burial and Cremation (Scotland) Act 2016 enables Scottish Ministers to make regulations which will ensure the safety of headstones.
"In addition, ministers will appoint inspectors to oversee the operation of burial authorities, including burial grounds. These important measures will ensure that burial ground safety is given appropriate priority.
“The conduct of Fatal accident Inquiries and any decisions on prosecution are a matter for the Lord Advocate acting independently.”
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