According to a survey carried out by the Wicklow County Council in 1998, there are 119 burial grounds in the county, spread out over 21 parishes. These include cemeteries provided by the Council in pursuance of the Public Health (Ireland) Act 1878, as well as cemeteries provided by the different church bodies, principally adjacent to churches. There are many burial grounds, especially the older ones in rural areas, which are no longer in active use.
There are 34 burial grounds controlled by the Council that are currently in use. Wicklow County Council employ part-time registrars who carry out light maintenance and sell the grave spaces.
The Council, for its part, through the Municipal District Area Engineers carry out the heavier type of maintenance where machinery etc. is required to be used.
The Planning, Development and Environment Department deals with applications to erect gravestones, applications for exhumation licence and general queries in relation to graveyards.
The consent of the Council is required if a person wishes to erect a memorial (headstone) in any of the Council-controlled graveyards, see attached application form.
For the Old Graveyard at Glendalough the consent of the Office of Public Works is also required to erect a memorial, but the application must be made through the Council.
A permit is required from the Council if the remains of a deceased person are to be exhumed.
COVID - 19 - Guidance for Funeral Directors from the Health Protection Surveillance Centre.
The following link provides up to date guidance issued by the HPSC to funeral directors regarding Covid 19 and includes information on managing the funeral / burial of an individual with confirmed Covid 19 infection HPSC - Guidance for Funeral Directors.
Rathnew Cemetery - Survey
Irish Graveyards on behalf of Wicklow County Council recently completed a survey of interments at Rathnew Cemetery. A map of the graveyard showing each plot along with a plot number and a list of all recorded interments in the plot will shortly be erected at the cemetery.
The survey can be viewed at www.irishgraveyards.ie In order to search the records log on to the Irish Graveyard website www.irishgraveyards.ie and click on the search button. Select Co. Wicklow on the county tab and Rathnew on the graveyard tab.
Click on the last name tab and enter the surname of the person you wish to find and do the same on the first name tab. At this stage you can click on the submit button to find all interments for the details selected.
If you wish to make any alterations to the information an alteration sheet can be downloaded from the below documents and submitted to Wicklow County Council at env@wicklowcoco.ie