Formal apology to families

Published on 29 August 2019

MidCoast Council has formally apologised to the community and families impacted by the incorrect laying down of a large number of headstones at The Bight Cemetery, Wingham.

Councillors supported a Motion at yesterday’s Council meeting expressing they were “sincerely sorry” for the outcome. As part of the Motion, Councillors also supported all necessary measures to rectify the situation and to ensure it doesn’t happen again.

The meeting also endorsed a range of other actions implemented by Council since the incident, including the commitment to work with the families of those impacted by the incorrect laying down of headstones and the Blight of the Bight community group. Councillors also acknowledged the commissioning of an external independent investigation into the matter by the General Manager, Adrian Panuccio.

As part of our commitment to working with impacted families, Council has published a map of the cemetery indicating the monuments which have been laid down. The website also includes a portal for family members to register their interest in the graves, to assist with communication moving forward.

The Mayor, Cr David West, has also issued a personal apology to the impacted families identified to date.

Council is currently developing an action plan to repair the damaged headstones at the Bight Cemetery, and following this a separate action plan will be developed on the monument risk assessment program.

A report on the development of the action plans and progress on other outcomes agreed with the community will be provided to Council and then to the community via regular updates through a range of channels, including local media and Council’s website.