St Andrew's Parish Church, on Worden Lane, is the burial place of some of the town's most recognised names, from Leyland Motors founder Henry Spurrier to gunner Stephen Wright.

The Leyland Guardian made repeated attempts to speak to the Rev David Gibb without success.

However church member Derek Forrest said the issue has been a topic of discussion for some time.

He said: "There are different estimates on how long the graveyard will last. The plots are now going up to the back fence and it will be tight by the time it gets down to me!

"It is a general parish graveyard - not just for church members and as long as people want to get buried, St Andrew's is the place they'll go.

"I'm very conscious when I go to a funeral that we are getting ever closer to the back gate and the procedure is ultimately to close the graveyard when its full and hand it over the the council. It becomes their obligation."

Mr Forrest, who runs his own solicitors firm in Leyland, said that there are various estimates for how soon the graveyard could be full.

He added: "I find that in most wills these days people are opting for cremation, and there is the brand new crematorium at Charnoock Richard.
"This may release the pressures on the graveyard.

"Originally the church owned large plots of land which were known as the church fields, but they have been sold off and are now Chesnut Court and Crocus Fields.

"We are trying to find a solution."