Tranquility Garden


In this section you can discover more details about the Tranquility Garden, located within Stratford-upon-Avon Cemetery.



Tranquility Garden Photograph courtesy of Roy Barratt.

Tranquility Garden Opening, 20 May, 2017

It was in December 2012 that the embryonic idea of a Tranquility Garden was first brought to the Town Council’s General Purposes Committee.  This additional facility within the Cemetery was thought to be of vital importance to an ever growing community, particularly as there was a need to take into account the increase in cremations, from 35% in 1960 to 75% in 2015.

After several years of planning and hard work, Stratford-upon-Avon Town Council was pleased to officially open the Tranquility Garden on Saturday 20 May, 2017. The ceremony began with a short speech by the Chairman of the Cemetery Working Party, the group instrumental in spearheading the project from conception to fruition. 

The Chairman, Councillor Tony Jackson, expressed gratitude to all those involved in the Garden’s project, singling out in particular the Garden’s creators, local landscapers Hilary and Brian Jones from Spartacus Landscape Gardens. He also Additionally, he thanked Stuart Clifford from George Clifford and Son, who has worked in partnership with the Town Council, particularly in providing the granite blocks which will eventually form the iconic Walkway of Remembrance.

 Thankfully, the weather remained fine long enough to see the newly incumbent Mayor, Victoria Alcock, cut the ribbon and officially open the project. Visitors were then encouraged to take a stroll around the Garden at their leisure and take a close look at the sculptures, architecture and the subtle planting which was just beginning to bloom.  Hilary was quick to point that the landscaping was very new and that the Garden would only get better with time.

 To revisit a quote from The Chairman’s speech at the opening of the Tranquility Garden: “The Town Council is forever mindful that those visiting the Cemetery are generally bereaved, and whatever the stage of their grieving process, they all care passionately about the final resting place of their loved one. Consequently, as the burial authority, we are intent on creating a peaceful and serene place for visitors to reflect and remember those who are no longer with them”.

Another aim we are eager to fulfil is to provide a setting which offers a place for ash burial plots, as well as a dedicated area for the scattering of ashes. Additionally, we are keen to provide opportunities to commemorate those who may be interred or scattered elsewhere, by purchasing memorial slate plaques, granite paving stones, and bench plaques.

For further information, or to arrange the purchase of a memorial item or ash plot, please contact Emma Evans at the Town Council on 01789 269332 or email emma.evans@stratford-tc.gov.uk