More answers to readers’ queries and comments
Below is a further compilation of “Quick Answers” to questions which have arisen from searches of, or comments during recent weeks, providing links to our blog posts addressing these issues.
1. Questions and answers
| Question | Quick Answer | L&RUK Answer |
| grossly offensive meaning for mal comms (?) | “Grossly offensive” or merely “offensive”? DPP v McConnell: a note, (160107). | |
| what does a verger do at funerals | The precise duties of a verger will be specific to each parish church. | Often a “front of house” post to coordinate between clergy, family and funeral director. Also may assist in setting up church prior to funeral. |
| parish council churchyard maintenance | PCC responsible for maintenance of open churchyards. | Responsibility may be transferred to Local Authority for churchyards closed by Order in Council. |
| bangles religene | Kara bangles at school – again, (171004). | |
| parochial church verger fees | Fees for a verger are “extras” not included in the Table of Parochial Fees, and are payable to the PCC. | |
| fonts buried in churchyard | “They bury fonts, don’t they?“, (150407). | “Burial and destruction of unwanted fonts – further clarification“, (160431). |
| are ashes defined as human remains | Sort of: “Cremation” means the burning of human remains, SI 2008/2841, and Burial and Cremation (Scotland) Act 2016 ,,, | …”Ashes defined in: s4 The Cremation (England and Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2016 and s45 Burial and Cremation (Scotland) Act 2016 |
| memorial service church cost
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There are no set fees for conducting a memorial service in the CofE. | Archbishops’ Council recommends that, where a memorial service is on a similar scale to a funeral service, the PCC fee should be based on the statutory fee for the service. |
2. Case law related queries
| Question | Quick Answer | L&RUK Answer |
| frank otuo | Defamation and church discipline: Otuo, (190620). | |
| jeremy ganga | Is a diocesan bishop a “qualifications body”?: Ganga v Chelmsford DBF, (151207). | |
| ajilore versus hackney lbc [2014] ewca civ 1273 | Not within the scope of this blog … | … but the Supreme Court judgment is here. |
3. Top ten L&R UK posts since 29th September 2019
* With regard to the significant interest shown in the parochial fees for 2020, on 18 September, the Office for National Statistics reported that the Consumer Prices Index was 1.7% in August 2019, down from 2.0% in July 2019. The Parochial Fees for 2020 will be based upon this rate of inflation. Last year the Church published the revised parochial fees about one month after to ONS announcement of the rate of inflation.
4. Q&A on other areas of ecclesiastical law
“Canon Law Made Easy, Cathy Caridi
Unless marked §, the questions are the search terms used, verbatim; questions arising externally to the blog, (twitter/other), are marked ‡; the dates in parentheses are in the format (yymmdd). Our “Quick Answer” indicates when the topic of the query was last addressed on the blog. As stated in our General Terms and Conditions, at L&RUK we do not give legal advice, or purport to do so.