Grave concerns over church sale

CONCERN is growing in Dalton and Carrutherstown over community assets that are being included in the sale of the village church.

The Church of Scotland closed the kirk last September and put it on the market, along with the nearby church hall and car park, for offers over £135,000.

It is now under offer and, much to the community’s horror, it has emerged that the sale will include the local war memorial, the Millennium tree which was planted in 2000, and some graves.

The community council is trying to get answers on how this has happened and if the public will still have access to these important local features, as well as if the memorial can continue to be used for wreath laying ceremonies every Remembrance Day.

However, they’ve been told that decisions on access will be up to the new owners.

Meanwhile, the existence of graves outwith the classified graveyard and on land near to the church building itself has been denied - even though they can be physically seen.

A spokesman for the Church of Scotland yesterday said: “The Church appreciates the sentimental value that buildings have for many people and endeavours to dispose of them as sensitively as possible.

“Dalton Church is under offer and the war memorial, which is visible from the road, is included in the title, so it would be up to the new owner to make decisions.

“We have no information on the reported existence of lairs in the grounds.”

A council spokesperson added: “We recognise the strength of feeling locally and understand why the community wishes to ensure that the war memorial and graves are treated appropriately. However, the council also has a responsibility to avoid prejudicing a legitimate legal transaction between the Church of Scotland and any prospective purchaser.”

Reacting, a community council spokesperson said: “We went to DG Council and asked for help and got a letter back saying we had to engage our own solicitor. We do not ask a lot nor strive to get a lot of help from them but we asked something simple, for advice, when it’s been a managed asset for many years.

“It’s a blasé approach. It’s infuriating.

“People in the community are asking what’s going to happen and at the moment we cannot give them any answers.”