Knowledge

The reburial programme on HS2 Phase One is unprecedented: never has an engineering project been faced with the challenge of such numbers of buried human remains to remove, look after and rebury – over 30,000 people. The legal framework is also new – while the requirements of the High Speed Rail Act mirror those of other projects, an additional legal Undertaking with the Archbishops’ Council of the Church of England, along with HS2’s values of integrity and respect mean that for the first time religious and public scrutiny have truly provided the parameters for programme design for a task of this nature. This has helped HS2 to deliver a result that can stand up to ethical and public challenge as a unique case study for future projects – for later phases of HS2, and other largescale infrastructure programmes. This paper describes how the technical, legal, commercial and ethical requirements of the project have been translated into the process of selecting and negotiating with appropriate sites for reburial. It highlights key challenges presented by the project’s circumstances and the impact of contemporary issues and commercial considerations on the programme. The results of the programme for this stage of the work are presented in conclusion.