LITTLE VENICE - ST MARY'S CHURCHYARD GRAVES ARE SMASHED UP BY WESTMINSTER COUNCIL - Apology after contractor JA Cornish leaves children’s headstones in broken pieces

Published: 16 April 2010
by JAMIE WELHAM

GRAVESTONES of children have been smashed to pieces and dozens more lie in ruins during repair works to a 400-year-old burial ground.

The 18th and 19th-century headstones were destroyed by pick-axe-wielding workmen in St Mary’s Churchyard, Little Venice, on Good Friday.

Westminster Council has apologised for the “unacceptable” damage and blamed its own contractor, JA Cornish Ltd.

The council claim the contractor did not follow procedure, by continuing to dig after gravestones were uncovered, and because no supervisor was on site.

St Mary’s parish priest Revd Gary Bradley said it was “extraordinary” that such a devastating event could happen on “consecrated ground”.

The Diocese of London, which owns the historic churchyard, would not confirm whether it would take legal action, but the West End Extra understands this is under consideration.

The £45,000 contract has now been suspended and works stopped after an official investigation was launched at City Hall.

The desecration of gravestones has been described as “disgusting” and an insult to the ­families of those buried there. 

The churchyard is enshrined in history – it was where the painter William Hogarth secretly wed Jane Thornhill in 1729.

The council will launch a desperate ­salvage operation to establish whether the stones can be mended.

When the West End Extra visited the site yesterday (Thursday), our reporters found ­broken headstones dumped under giant ­tarpaulins and fenced off with signs warning “Keep Out!”.

Church records on the gravestones are patchy and most of the inscriptions are too faint to read, although many are to children as young as 10 years of age.

Conservation architect Julyan Wickham, who witnessed the damage from his bedroom window in St Mary’s Mansions, said: “I was absolutely shocked especially as I saw it on Good Friday. I couldn’t believe they were using pick-axes. I think they should make every effort to retain the graves and see what can be done to put them back together.”

Michael Foley, who lives in nearby ­Edgware Road and regularly walks his dog in the gardens, said: “It’s absolutely disgusting. Destroying gravestones is a crime in my eyes. 

“This church has so much history and now it won’t be the same.”

Revd Bradley added: “I don’t think this was done with any malice but it is deeply regrettable and extraordinary when Westminster has such a good record of maintaining churchyards. For it to happen on Good ­Friday is also very unfortunate.”

The churchyard dates back to medieval times, with the first recorded burial in 1591. It houses dozens of prominent 18th-century figures, among them the painter Benjamin Haydon, sculptors Thomas Banks and Joseph Nollekens and the great Shakesperean actress Sarah Siddons. 

It fell into council hands following a shake-up of church parish ­borders and an overcrowding crisis that meant there was no longer room for burials. 

Dr Leith Penny, ­Westminster Council’s strategic director of city management, said: “We employed an approved company to carry out essential maintenance work on a wall, during which it appears a ­number of buried gravestones dating from the 19th century have been damaged.

“Westminster has a rich and diverse history and we have strict ­protocols in place to ensure the protection of our historic sites and monuments. The ­contractor has admitted its mistake and we have ordered the company to suspend all work until an urgent review has been carried out.”

Despite repeated phone calls to JA ­Cornish, no spokesman was able for comment.