St Mary's Church, Preston, Lancashire. Archaeological Watching Brief

In response to the Museum of Lancashire’s planning application to install a drainage
pipe and new path at St Mary’s Church, Preston, Lancashire (NGR SD 548 296),
Lancashire County Archaeological Services (LCAS) placed an archaeological
condition on the planning consent due to the possibility of disturbing graves.
A watching brief was undertaken of the removal of five grave slabs, which had the
potential to overlie brick-lined shafts underneath. Upon removal of the grave slabs,
however, there was no evidence of the shafts, but the slabs were evidently in-situ, and
it is to be presumed that the burials themselves were located at a greater depth than
the disturbance caused by the development. It was therefore agreed with LCAS that
these were to be left in-situ with the area covered in a woven fabric prior to the laying
of the path.