Gold Award for Oak Hill Lawn Cemetery

The cemetery in Hatfield, owned and managed by Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council, won the 2025/26 Gold award in the Small/Medium Cemetery category of the national competition.

Organised by the Institute of Cemetery and Crematorium Management, the Cemetery of the Year Awards are designed not only to improve standards within burial grounds but also to encourage compliance with legislation and support best practice.

Councillor Jane Quinton, Deputy Leader of the council and Executive Member, Leisure and Community, said:

“I am delighted that we have received a gold award. It is a testament to the dedication, care and professionalism of the team to make sure Oak Hill is a welcoming and peaceful space for our communities.”

Philip Potts of the Memorial Awareness Board, which has been organising the Cemetery of the Year Awards for nearly 20 years, said,

“The awards are an excellent opportunity to reward hard-working staff and demonstrate the central role cemeteries and church yards can play in the community. They provide places of peaceful contemplation and beauty, as well as their historical, social and ecological importance.

“The team at Oak Hill Lawn Cemetery and Crematorium performed exceptionally throughout the extensive judging period which is focused on Industry Standards, Good Practice and Freedom of Choice.”

Notes to editors

• In July the Oak Hill team was also awarded a Gold Standard in the ‘Bereaved Assessment Process for Cremation’ and a Silver Standard in the ‘Bereaved Assessment Process for Burial’ by the Institute of Cemetery and Crematorium Management (ICCM) at their awards.
• The Cemetery of the Year Award has been supported and endorsed by leading industry Associations:

Institute of Cemetery and Crematorium Management (ICCM)

The Federation of Burial and Cremation Authorities (FBCA)

The Society of Local Council Clerks (SLCC)

British Register of Accredited Memorial Masons (BRAMM)