Memorial Benches and Trees

Damaged Memorial Benches & Memorial Trees

All memorial benches and memorial trees are identified by a WhatThreeWords reference. You can obtain this reference by visiting the WhatThreeWords website.

If you discover a damaged memorial bench or memorial tree on land owned by Torridge District Council, please contact the Estates Department using the details below (quoting the WhatThreeWords reference):

Email: corporate.property@torridge.gov.uk

Telephone: 01237 428700 (Option 9 - Ask for Estates)

Post: Estates Department, Torridge District Council, Riverbank House, Bideford, EX39 2QG

Memorial Benches

The Council owns and maintains multiple memorial benches across the district.

Memorial benches are dedicated for 10 year terms. The sponsor must pay for the cost of restoring the bench at the start of their sponsorship and for a plaque to be affixed to the bench, if desired.

Inscriptions on plaques must be approved by the Council before it may be affixed to the bench.

Officers will decide whether the extent of any damage to the bench warrants repair to restore it or replacement of the bench as they become available.

Listings for memorial benches are allocated on a "first come, first served" basis. We do not have a waiting list for memorial benches, so please do not contact the Council regarding the purchase of a memorial bench if there are no listings on this page.

We will post listings for new memorial benches in the Availability section at the bottom of the page. Please see below for the associated fees for memorial benches:

Fees:

New Composite Bench = £1398.00 + Installation costs (to be determined on a case by case basis.)

Plaque (If provided by the Council) = £93.00

Refurbishment of an existing bench = £600.00

Memorial Trees

In recent years, the Council has begun to offer Memorial Trees as an eco-friendly alternative to Memorial Benches.

Memorial trees are planted on land owned by the Council and are dedicated to the friend or relative of their sponsor.

The sponsor must make a one-off payment to cover the cost of the tree and a plaque to be sited next to it, if desired.

Inscriptions on plaques must be approved by the Council before it may be sited on Council owned land.

Officers will liaise with a potential sponsor to determine a suitable species of tree.

Listings for memorial trees are allocated on a "first come, first served" basis. We do not have a waiting list for memorial trees, so please do not contact the Council regarding the purchase of a memorial tree if there are no listings on this page.

We will post listings for new memorial trees in the Availability section at the bottom of the page. Please see below for the associated fees for memorial trees:

Fees:

Memorial Tree = Approx. between £140.00 and £250.00

Free Standing Plaque = £120.00

Availability

NO CURRENT LISTINGS

There are no current listings for memorial benches or memorial trees on Council land.

If you wish to make a general enquiry, please call 01237 424244 and speak with the receptionists at Caddsdown Business Support Centre.

The Council makes no guarantees regarding availability.

The areas of Westward Ho! (Including Northam Burrows), Appledore, and Victoria Park in Bideford are currently at capacity for memorial benches & memorial trees. This means that we have assessed these areas and determined that there is no availability for further memorial benches. We will post availabilities in these areas on this web page.