Eight possible cemetery sites have been identified to combat the lack of burial provision in Sheffield.

Currently, Sheffield has only six to eight years of provision remaining citywide and six out of 16 cemeteries have no new grave spaces available. In the south of the city the majority of cemeteries are full.

The location of these sites are yet to be revealed as a meeting will be held on Wednesday to discuss the progress of the project.

Councillor Tom Hunt, Leader of Sheffield City Council and Chair of the Strategy and Resources Committee, said: “The loss of a loved one affects us all at some point in our lives. 

“We will continue to work closely with stakeholders, including those who have been important advocates for this work, to meet the needs of all our communities.”

Muslim communities have as little as three to four and a half years of provision left for Islamic burials, which ideally must happen within 24 hours after death.

Abid Hussain, Spokesperson for the South Yorkshire Muslim Bereavement Trust, has praised the council’s recent efforts to ‘escalate’ the issue since Chairman of the Trust, Mahmood Hussain, launched the petition on 4 December 2024.

Mr Hussain said: “We can’t do what other communities do and wait or cremate. We have to bury the dead to honour them in a dignified manner.”

Since approving the petition, Sheffield City Council have developed a new Cremation, Burial and Cemetery Green Spaces Strategy.

Additionally, the Strategy and Resources Committee have established a multidisciplinary working group to assess the feasibility of providing new cremation spaces.

Emeritus Professor Ian Rotherham at the Advanced Wellbeing Research Centre in Sheffield Hallam University emphasised the importance of long-term planning, considering the city’s growing population and the need for multifunctional green spaces.

He said: “You need the requirements from the burial service point of view but you also need to make sure that they are acceptable from a wider green space strategy.

“This is actually a bigger question than just cremation and burial; it applies to a lot of the services that local authorities are expected to provide for their community.”

If the proposal is approved on Wednesday, Sheffield City Council’s Strategy and Resources Committee will progress feasibility studies to identify the suitability of each of the eight sites, secure funding, and appoint a dedicated project lead.