Sorry, I can't believe what I'm reading in some of these posts. If the deceased were an -ism I'd say half of these posts were guilty of ' deadism' and fall foul of some equalities legislation! Seemingly most of you have taken the pill of eternal life and assume that you will never yourselves need such suitable accommodation. Perhaps the war graves of Ypres and Flanders ought also to be razed and holiday homes built with a nice new Eurostar link. These graves are after all nearly 100 years old now, so who would care anyway, and the War Graves commission could save the money spent on their upkeep. Whatever next.

The needs of the dead are also very much the needs of the living who are left behind and are actually this will be the need of all of us. As anyone who has lost someone close will testify, such places become ' homes' for the deceased and a place to go and recall fond memories and to pay respects.

I think its a shame if the Rec is to go however if it is indeed been acquired and meant as a burial place with a temporary use as a football pitch then I can't see how that can be changed easily but perhaps there is a way in which it could be better used. There is a clear demand on land for burial spaces so what are the alternatives other than cremation. There may be some innovations around the world that could be looked into. I would think high density design might have to feature here too as well as new housing!

The fact that a playground is surrounded by graves isn-t the usual vista for children playing ( hasn't it always been that way anyway?) but would they necessarily worry about it unless we as parents instill our own anxieties and fears into them? And can we or should we realistically shade children from the realities of the end of life? The Victorians were surrounded by death, it was always present for them whereas we lead more sheltered existences these days given our life expectancy and good health. s a society we seem to run away from addressing the inevitable.

I do also think that there is a myth around burial plots. You might lay someone to rest in a grave with a memorial stone on top however in a few years the ground will shift and deceased persons will literally, be on the move. This happened to my parents graveyard which was on a site on a hill. You will never really know who is directly underneath the headstone but it is likely not to be the original occupant. I do think people who opt for burial or whose families prefer this need to be encouraged to be realistic about the graves themselves and to look towards a more sustainable way of continuing the burial tradition but in a less land hungry way, as Dave has discussed above.