Welsh burial grounds stand apart from burial grounds in other parts of the UK. Many of these burial grounds date back centuries and all of them are of great importance to the heritage and culture of Wales. Welsh burial grounds play an outstanding and critical role in the biodiversity, cultural history and built heritage of Wales. They contain over 750 ancient, veteran and notable trees (including at least 331 ancient yew trees over 500 years in age). In addition, they contain a significant number of listed monuments and memorialise key local and national historical figures.

Older burial grounds (medieval) contain our oldest trees, our rarest lichens, precious fungi and stunning wildflower meadows, untouched by herbicides and left unploughed for centuries. In many cases, a medieval burial ground may be the oldest piece of enclosed land in a parish and the boundary wall the oldest remaining built structure. They can be rich in biodiversity and have the potential (with the right care and management) to become designated as Local Wildlife Sites.

In our recent pilot project (Biodiversity Hotspots Across Wales), 52 sites were surveyed by a botanist from which 16 were recommended as potential Local Wildlife Sites. Working with 26 local authority cemeteries (7 from Flintshire County Council and 19 from Powys Council), the pilot project found that newer burial grounds, such as those associated with chapels and municipal cemeteries, can also be havens for wildlife. The project provided training on how to increase biodiversity within burial grounds, conducted botanical surveys and created site specific management plans. Biodiversity increased in all of the pilot sites and site managers were able to apply their new skills to other council-owned cemeteries, with the result that elected members were very keen to see this development extended further.