Location

St. Michael's Graveyard,
Manor Road (on the corner of Landsdowne Road)
Worthing
West Sussex - Location Map

About this Cemetery

The Worthing Group of the Sussex Wildlife Trust, in conjunction with Worthing Borough Council, took over the management of the Cemetery in 1998, and tend it in a way that is sympathetic to wildlife in an urban setting.

Light conservation work is carried out which includes wildflower management, coppicing and tree planting. The Cemetery, having been open since 1873, was closed for burials by an Act of Parliament after having been open for more than a hundred years. There are many clerics buried here, including the Bishop of Borneo, and there are four graves tended by the War Graves Commission.

Designated a Sussex Site of Nature Conservation Importance, the graveyard is an oasis for wildlife in the Town Centre. An abundance of grasses and herbs more usually associated with unimproved old meadows can be seen during the summer. A complete botanical survey is carried out through the summer months, and visits are made to record bird and invertebrate species.

Throughout the Autumn and Winter a working party meets twice a month to carry out clearance work around the graves, and to control the increase of tree species encroaching on the cemetery. This work is carried out over a four year cycle.

In spring there are Primroses in abundance, and wildlife including butterflies like Comma, and small Toroiseshell. Later there is a profusion of Birdsfoot Trefoil to support the Common Blue Butterflies that abound. Other species recorded include Red Admiral, Painted Lady, Holly Blue, Clouded Yellow, both large and small White, Gatekeeper, and Peacock.

A wide variety of trees in the cemetery have been kept to support the bird population that includes Blue Tit, Great Tit, Green Finch, Chiff-Chaff, Robin, Blackbird, Thrush, Jay, and Dunnock. Occasionally a Sparrowhawk can be seen above the site.

For information on other conservation work carried out in the Borough of Worthing please visit Conservation Management

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