A three-month consultation period has begun during which the parish wants to hear from anyone who has any comments about the proposals, including people who have family members buried there.
Many graves have not been tended for a long time – some now have wild brambles growing on them, while others have bushes planted by relatives growing out of control.
Junior constable David Hannah said the aim was for all of the graves to be tidied up. ‘We can’t allow them to stay this way,’ he said. ‘What we’re trying to do is get this cemetery looking as good as the one at Rue a Chiens.’
‘We just want to be seen to be doing something to enhance the area,’ added senior constable Joe Abbotts.
The cemetery was first used in 1864 with the last new plot opened in 1978. The only burials now available are for people interred in family graves.
The memorial wall is still in use, with people able to decide if a plaque goes at the church cemetery or the parish one in Rue a Chiens.
Planting grass in front of the wall and removing unused memorial vases and paving slabs is something Mr Hannah said was being planned to tidy up this area.
The cemetery suffered a major landslip in 1969 when hundreds of graves fell into the neighbouring Longue Hougue quarry. Some of the remains were recovered and reinterred in mass graves that are now marked with cherry trees and a memorial. Some bones could clearly be seen in the quarry a few summers ago when water levels dropped significantly.
Any work will be done by contractors, with sextons no longer employed by the church.
‘We just want the people of St Sampson’s to know that, a, we care, and b, we’re doing something about it,’ said Mr Hannah.
The amount to be spent on the work has yet to be set, with the decision due to be taken at a douzaine meeting and then voted on by parishioners at April’s rates meeting.