Rother District Council has bought more land to alleviate the pressure on graveyard space.

The East Sussex council was highlighted by a national news organisation as having limited space at its cemeteries.

Rosemary Burt, cemeteries officer at the council confirmed there was only about 10 years' worth of space left in its two cemeteries in Bexhill and Rye.

She added: “It can be difficult to predict the amount of space left in a cemetery as death rates fluctuate year on year, but it is predicted that there is currently around 10 years worth of space left in the two Rother District Council run cemeteries.

“To address future need, Rother District Council purchased about three hectares of land off St Mary's Lane, Bexhill with planning permission for cemetery extension. This will offer as much as 100 years worth of space.

“As well as the cemeteries owned by the district, there are parish council-owned cemeteries in Robertsbridge, Northiam and Battle and many churches in the district are still open for burials.”