Right then….. what else might you need to know???
WHEN ARE WE THERE?
Well, the Friends are in attendance at Jesmond Old Cemetery every first Saturday and every third Sunday, every month, from 10:00 onwards. Please feel free to pop along and chat to us – if we are not having a cuppa in the South Lodge, we’ll be busy somewhere outside. We’ll be very easy to spot though, as we will be wearing hi-vis vests with ‘Friends of Jesmond Old Cemetery’ emblazoned on our backs!!
OPENING TIMES
The cemetery itself keeps regular opening hours, but these change, depending on the time of year….
April to October
Monday to Friday, from 09:00 to 18:45
Saturday, Sunday and Bank Holidays, from 10:00 to 16:45
November to March
Monday to Friday, from 09:00 to 15:45
Saturday, Sunday and Bank Holidays, from 10:00 to 15:45
Please be aware that the gates to Jesmond Old Cemetery are locked at the end of each day; as such, if visiting near closing time, you need to keep an eye on the clock. There will be a ‘2 minute’ warning in the form of the Council lads tooting the horn on their vehicle and then that’s it. Don’t get locked in….. it’s quite scary being alone, in the dark, in a cemetery!! As a point of interest, if you look on the ground, near the main entrance, just by the Council Notice Board, you will see the remains of a metal structure that used to be the bell holder – back in the day, before Council vans with audible warning instruments were invented, the Superintendent of the cemetery rang this bell as a warning that the gates were about to be locked. It didn’t really matter too much if you got locked in though as the South Lodge was occupied, so you could always have asked if you could kip there overnight!!
FINDING A GRAVE
If you are trying to locate a grave, it is best to contact bereavementservices@newcastle.gov.uk with the name of the deceased, date of death and, if possible, the address the person was living at, at the time of their death. There is a fee of £27 for each search request. Once you have the location details of the grave, it can still be a challenge to find it – this is because of the unique design of Jesmond Old Cemetery, where there are no discernable grids or sections visible to guide you. There is a map, of sorts, that identifies the ‘con’ (consecrated) or ‘uncon’ (unconsecrated) sections of Jesmond Old Cemetery and also the ‘wards’, which are identified by Roman numerals but, even those with some experience in finding graves (like us), can find the map quite challenging!! As such, you can ask someone from Bereavement Services to place tape on the grave/monument to help you find it or give us a shout and we can, more often than not, locate the grave for you.
For those of you who do not live locally, if you get in touch and let us know the location details, we will find the grave, tidy it up, take some pictures and then send them to you – for free. How canny is that??
CARS
Victorian cemeteries were not designed to accommodate new fangled things like motor cars, so that’s why it’s almost impossible to park a car in Jesmond Old Cemetery. There is some space just outside the main entrance on Jesmond Road or you may be lucky and find a space just inside the main entrance, adjacent to the East and West Chapels. However, you would be well advised to try and find an on-street parking space in the local streets off Sandyford Road. Please, please, please do not park on the grass verges inside Jesmond Old Cemetery – we spend a great deal of time caring for the grass and planting bulbs, so it is a right pain in the bum to see cars parked there. The Council recognise the need to provide car parking spaces within the cemetery and have plans in hand to sort this soon, but it will not be a lot (don’t expect loads, like at the Crem), so please think ahead and plan your parking considerately. Or get a bus…. or a taxi….. or a Metro (Jesmond Metro is only 5 minutes walk away)….. or walk!!
DOGS
Dogs are welcome to enjoy the beautiful spaces of Jesmond Old Cemetery but…. please keep them on a lead and pick up their poo; oh, and divvint hang the poo bag on a tree.
SAFETY
There is not much in the way of established footpaths in Jesmond Old Cemetery, so wear stout footwear when promenading around Jesmond Old Cemetery…. just like the Victorians did back in the day. Do not climb on any of the monuments; it’s disrespectful, daft and could be dangerous.
WATER
There is only one tap, situated near the East Chapel at the Main Entrance. It’s a bit of a trek if your family grave is one of the new ones near the Sandyford Road entrance but, if we are around, let us know and we’ll get you some water from the South Lodge. The Council do have plans to locate a new tap near where the new burials are, but this may take some time, unfortunately. It’s not the Council’s fault – blame the Tory ‘Government’ and their lack of funding – just a personal opinion.