The project will be developed at Pole Wood, Upper Stanway Farm, Rushbury, near Church Stretton, despite some objections from some local people.

Up to 400 burial plots are to be allowed at the hillside site in Hope Valley, which is part of the Shropshire Hills area of outstanding natural beauty.

There will also be room for people to bury urns and scatter the ashes of their loved ones.

South Shropshire District Council's director of planning James Caird said the plans were an "innovative and creative use of the woodland" and rejected claims that the burial ground would cause congestion.

A handful of locals objected to the project on the grounds that it would bring extra traffic to narrow country lanes.

But the landowners said they expect only two or three vehicles a day at the site and about the same number of funerals each month.