Forget Me Not Memorial Garden opens at Bocking Cemetery

On Monday, July 17, Braintree Council chairman Diana Garrod officially opened a new ‘Forget Me Not’ Memorial Garden at Bocking Cemetery.

The garden, which measures more than 1,000 sq. metres, includes a children’s area with hand-carved wooden sculptures by locally based Andrew Butcher and a willow dome created by local artist Deb Hart, which visitors can tie a coloured ribbon to in memory of their loved ones.

Schoolchildren from Bocking Primary School painted cobblestones and a hand-carved wood entrance sign was donated by Cressing Community Shed.

There is also a parents’ area with benches that memorial plaques can be fixed to, a honed granite engraved entrance sign donated by Bradford Memorials and a tree donated by Paul J King Funeral Directors.

The garden includes a granite centre piece donated by J Day and Son Ltd Memorial Masons, a mix of native flora and fauna sustainable planting, a bug hotel to help increase biodiversity, as well as plenty of space for memorial shrubs.

There is also a memorial wall for fixed plaques and a variety of planting areas which can be purchased by grieving families and friends to create their own space in memory of someone they have lost.

Ms Garrod said: “There is no easy way to deal with grief and I hope this memorial garden will help people feel closer to their loved ones and enable them to pay tribute to their life and honour them in their own special way.”

Council transformation, environment and customer services boss Tom Cunningham added: “This new memorial garden is a very special place that residents can visit to reflect in a serene environment and remember their loved ones.

“We would like to say a big thank you to everyone involved in the creation of the Forget Me Not Memorial Garden for their contributions and generous donations.”

The total investment from Braintree Council for the project was £100,854.

For more information, visit braintree.gov.uk/forgetmenot.