Roger Young, a Hadleigh resident, made the following statement at the Hadleigh Town Council meeting on Thursday, 22 April 2021.

He was recommending that the Natural Burial site venture be mothballed whilst a professional evaluation of a needs analysis be conducted covering the existing cemetery and the new extension. The "Old Council" and the Cemetery Working Group both recommended this, but it has not yet taken place. The money saved, by not continuing to create a natural burial site right now, could be better spent on the proposed Layham Road Sports Ground new facilities.

His statement was:-

"At the last HTC meeting it was agreed (Minute HTC21/82 – Cemetery Extension Progress) " … to let the staff progress the (Cemetery Extension) project". This decision was made based upon a revised financial spreadsheet, presented to the Cemetery Working Group ("CWG"), but denied to the public. It was only after the meeting that the figures were put on the website. Only then was I able to analyse and scrutinise them. What I found were significant errors and omissions. Details of these were sent to the Town Clerk, Councillor Talbot, the Chair of CWG and to the Mayor. I have not yet received a response about the errors.

What the necessary corrections to the spreadsheet disclose, is that the cashflow consequence of proceeding with the "natural burial" site is not the positive credit of £3,007 shown, but a deficit of over £50,000. This change, together with last year's uncovered £42,000 shortfall in General Reserves and the outstanding £450,000 Public Works Loan Board "PWLB" loan repayments means, once again, the Council will have to raise the Council Tax precept by over 10% again next year if the "Natural Burial" site goes ahead.

Councillor Begerrow's recent budget figures show that the income projections reported to the PWLB by the "Old Council", were £130,000 to date whereas the actual income to date is less than £30,000. This is a shortfall over £100,000 after only four years. This figure will grow annually.

Way back in 2018 the Council agreed, and budgeted, for a qualified professional to make a proper needs analysis of the Cemetery. At the first meeting of the CWG in August 2019 it was agreed to do the same. It still hasn't been done. Why not? Who is trying to delay and block it?

A professional report could be used to explain to the PWLB the errors made by the "Old Council". Otherwise, it is likely that any new application to them, for the Layham Road Sports Ground, will be stymied on the grounds of the Council's previous incompetence. In my experience, Civil servants don't like being duped, neither do residents when it costs them so dearly.

Please stop this ill-conceived venture right now. Mothball the whole idea, until it is proven necessary. The annual income received is never likely to cover the true annual costs. It will continue to drain resources.

Please use the annual savings, by not pursuing this legacy project, to build and grow facilities for the younger generations. They need our support, now more than ever.

Thank you."