The leader of Bradford Council, Ian Greenwood, has offered a full apology to bereaved families who said their campaign for improvements at a babies cemetery have been snubbed.

Sammi Lang, who started a Facebook support group for Scholemoor’s Snowdrop Garden after her two-and-half-month-old daughter died, said members were “hurt” when the Council “took all the public credit” for recent refurbishment work there.

She said after all the help parents had given, they now felt the Council was not interested in them any more.

Coun Greenwood said concerns had been raised with him at Tuesday’s ceremony to mark the start of the refurbishment work with some parents saying they had not been properly informed about and involved in the changes.

He added: “This is a very sensitive and highly emotive issue. Each of these parents has suffered heartbreaking grief and they should all have been properly involved and their views taken into account.

“Clearly for some people this has not been the case and I can only offer them a full apology which I hope they will feel able to accept.

“In future the Council must ensure that it takes proper account of the feelings of all those parents concerned on an ongoing basis.”

A new 4ft-high stone wall has been built at the garden where parents have paid respects to their children since 1982.

The wall, divided by pillars into 12 sections representing each month of the year, was designed to give families a designated area to leave flowers or temporary mementoes. A bigger area for formal memorial plaques is also being created.

But Miss Lang, 19, from West Bowling says it was the parents who came up with ideas for the new-look garden and originally approached local businesses themselves to donate materials to make it happen.

  • Read the full story Thursday’s T&A