A POIGNANT ceremony will take place at a village church soon.

A memorial stone will be laid to mark the graves of stillborn babies and young children buried there.

An unknown number of infants lie in unmarked graves at St Nicholas's Church in Upper Cumberworth.

The issue came to light a few months ago, when an elderly worshipper complained that cars were driving over her child's grave.

Churchwarden Margaret Munt believes the practice of burying the children in unmarked graves stopped about 70 years ago.

She thinks that some of the babies may be in common graves.

But the mother-of-two warned people not to rush to judgement.

She said: "Things were different in those days; people bottled things up."

A stone bearing the inscription: "In loving memory of all those babies and children here buried" will be dedicated in a brief service at 3pm on Sunday October 15.

Mrs Munt, who has worshipped at the church for 30 years, said: "We're trying to make amends in some way."