Inspectors in some district councils are covering headstones in poor repair with yellow plastic bags in an attempt to make cemeteries safer.

More than 100 memorial stones in Leicestershire have been covered in recent weeks.

The Thorpe Road cemetery in Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire is one of the graveyards that has many stones needing repair.

After an inspection of the cemetery, district council officials said 130 of the memorial stones needed urgent repairs.

'Distressed'

Inspectors said some of the headstones were "very dangerous."

But not everyone is happy with the way the work is been carried out.

"I would feel distressed if I came up here to look at a grave and found one of those (bags) on it," one visitor to the graveyard said.

Checks will soon have to be carried out at cemeteries across the country, officials said.

"The safety of the public is absolutely paramount, including those relatives that are visiting the graves," Gerald Royston of Melton Mowbray Council said.

"I realise that they are visible, but if they weren't visible then they wouldn't be able to see them - and they wouldn't provide any protection," he said.

People who find a grave which has been covered over are being told not to go near it - and to contact their local authority.