A topple tester is to be used in Swindon to ensure cemetery memorials do not endanger people's lives.

The Council will use the £840 device to test the structural stability of the monuments as part of a full survey run by Swindon Services.

There has been national concern about the condition of graveside memorials and the safety risks they pose to the public.

Swindon's Community, Culture and Recreation Commission approved plans for the full-scale survey subject to the Cabinet's agreement.

Vice chairman Derique Montaut (Lab, Moredon) said: "A strategy must be adopted to ensure the public's safety. This makes very good sense."

The commission heard that if some memorials were found to be unsafe temporary safety measures would be employed such as fencing them in or laying them down.

If the owner of the memorial had not been found, Swindon Services would take the decision to repair the structure or, if this was found to be too costly, remove it permanently from the graveyard.

The topple tester is used to ensure all memorials withstand forces of up to 50kg.

The device consists of a rubber plunger and a buzzer, which sounds when the required stability is reached.