CREMATORIUM officials have been accused of showing 'disrespect' for grieving relatives after dozens of personal tribute ornaments were tossed into a trailer for rubbish.

Trainee Workington midwife Lucy Dixon, 33, says that she was left heartbroken when she discovered how staff had treated the tributes she left for her best friend Stephen Bonar.

The 39-year-old died suddenly on March 11.

But because of the coronavirus restrictions, his ashes could not be scattered until June - in the March Garden of Carlisle Crematorium.

On July 7 Lucy, a mum-of-five, visited the garden to pay her respects, and under a tree she gently placed tributes - including a heart-shaped wreath, and a heart-stone with the phrase "The one I love;" and a plaque showing Stephen's face, stating: 'If love could have saved you, you would have lived forever."

But at the weekend Stephen's brother contacted her to say the tributes had vanished. Lucy, of Shore Road, Siddick, initially thought they were stolen and so replaced them.

But this week, fearful it may happen again, she called the Crematorium and staff her they had removed the tributes.

Lucy said: “Round the back of the [crematorium] building there are big industrial rubbish bins and at the back of the bins is a trailer. I looked at the trailer and tears rolled down my face.

"There were babies’ things in there , all smashed and broken.

“Two of Stephen's plaques were broken. I pulled out a baby’s plaque which had his little face on which was in half, and I just thought 'How can you do that?'

"It's so disrespectful. There must have been 50 or 60 other people’s flowers and plaques for their daughters, sons, parents, and grandparents, and even for tiny babies."

"There's just no compassion. I was really upset. Despite searching thoroughly, Lucy could find no notices warning this would happen.

Carlisle City Council said posters explaining the rules are in "prominent locations". A spokeswoman said: "These pre-warn that items will be removed. All items removed are kept for one month and can be collected by contacting the Bereavement Services Office. In this instance, we apologise for any distress that this may have caused. Every attempt is made to treat items carefully.

"However if there was any damage to the memorial, we are extremely sorry.“The Crematorium grounds contain the cremated remains of many thousands of deceased and there is a fine balance when it comes to maintaining our land and also allowing memorials to be placed. The landscaped grounds provide a peaceful environment for people to pay their respects, lay flowers and visit memorials.

“If anyone has any concerns, we ask them to please contact our Bereavement Services team.”