Hundreds of gravestones have been deliberately toppled amid accusations of officially sanctioned "desecration".

Lewes District Council has so far flattened 600 headstones in two cemeteries because of safety fears.

Relatives of the dead now face potential bills totalling hundreds of pounds to have memorials restored.

Some of the headstones are as recent as 1999 and the council still has eight churchyards to survey.

Widower Cecil Barker, who lost wife Lucy to cancer 11 year ago, accused council chiefs of desecration.

Mr Barker, of Lake Drive, Peacehaven, was stunned to find his wife's £700 marble headstone flattened when he visited Seaford Cemetery yesterday.

The former RAF gunner said: "Nobody told me this was going to happen. I just walked in to find it placed down. I think the council has acted terribly. You would have thought they'd get in touch with relatives."

Safety fears were sparked by the death of six-year-old Reuben Powell, who was crushed by a falling memorial in Harrogate, North Yorkshire, two years ago.

Families are legally responsible for the upkeep of graves but tracking down relatives can prove difficult.

Yesterday, council contractors were subjecting headstones in Lewes Cemetery to a "topple test" to see if they could withstand the weight of an average child.

Hundreds of wobbly monuments were flattened, with a photo taken to identify them.

Stonemason Chris Groom, 43, of Richmond Road, Brighton, warned: "This is not the proper time to be doing this. If they had waited until the summer when the ground is hard they wouldn't have come down.

"Nobody can overstate the importance of safety but this is over-zealousness to the point of disbelief."

Councillor David Neighbour, Lewes District Council Cabinet member for community, denied any disrespect for the dead.

He said: "We understand people may be distressed by finding a memorial laid down but we are committed to doing our best to protect the lives of children.

"We ask for the understanding of all those who have lost loved ones while we carry out these tests.

"The ground is particularly soft in wet weather which makes memorials even more of a potential danger."

He promised officers would be writing to all families for whom they had contact details.