PENARTH Cemetery reopened to the public earlier this week following a review by the Penarth Town Council.

The council previously closed the cemetery to visitors in March to tackle the spread of the coronavirus.

The cemetery will be be open for visits on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays between 10am and 2pm, a council spokesman confirmed.

He said: “We understand people’s wish in the current pandemic to mourn and pay respects to those who remain dear to them.

“To ensure that this can continue, we ask all visitors to take good care of themselves and others by observing current health guidance, including social distancing.

“We must also ask that the grounds are not used for exercise or dog walking.

“Please help us look after the cemetery by taking any waste materials home.

“Please note that the toilets remain closed.

“For health and safety reasons, it will be necessary for us to close the grounds during a funeral.

“In current circumstances grounds maintenance has been scaled back and normal maintenance levels will resume when it is safe to do so.

“We hope that reopening the cemetery brings comfort and thank you for supporting us in keeping yourself and others safe”.

The change comes after the Welsh Government introduced minor adjustments to the lockdown measures.

The new rules allow people to exercise more than once a day near their home and enabled local authorities to begin the process of planning how to safely reopen libraries and municipal recycling centres.

Garden centres are also allowed to reopen.

Last week there were several incidents at the Merthyr Dyfan Cemetery in Barry which reopened on May 4.

Barry Town Council received reports that visitors had not observed social distancing.

On one occasion, a member of the public spat at a security guard whilst another coughed in a guard’s face.

Signage stating that water and bins were not in use was ignored and strimmers and lawnmowers were brought to the burial ground.

Barry Town Council is now reviewing the decision to open the cemetery.