A CHARITABLE trust has decided no news is good news after nobody stepped forward to object to its latest project.

The Bradford Building Preservation Trust is hoping to make a feature of a number of important gravestones - left stacked up at Ilkley Cemetery for more than 30 years.

The headstones, some of which are now cracked and covered in moss and debris are to be made into a footpath.

The charity had appealed for anyone who claimed ownership of the headstones - which bear the names of some of Ilkley's most illustrious families, Bolling and Middleton - to make their objections known.

As nobody has contacted the trust, they are now set to apply for a lottery grant to complete the project.

David Morton, of the trust, said: "We expected some sort of response but nobody has come back to us.

"As a group, the positive thing we take from that is that there is no violent opposition.

"It is not an issue that people are going to jump up and down about and say we shouldn't do."

The stones will be placed at the site of two Victorian chapels -themselves the subject of a restoration project by the trust - at the entrance to the cemetery, on Leeds Road.

One has already been returned to its former glory, after a grant, in the region of £16,000, was secured from Bradford Environmental Action Trust, which manages funds from landfill duties.

Mr Morton said: "One has already been done up. It is being used as a depository by a firm of accountants for storing documents."

The group now intends to further preserve the town's heritage by turning its attention to the second chapel.

Mr Morton said: "We are looking for a similar use for the chapel, a use that fits in with the cemetery.

"We are not looking necessarily for the best financial return. We are looking to restore the building and get a use for it.

"As a trust we look to restore historic buildings, that are derelict or their original use is no longer needed.

"We can give them another 30 or 40 years life, at least. Otherwise, they are subject to vandalism, decay sets in and the problem gets harder and harder."

The group is hoping to garner further lottery funding to complete the scheme, and will discuss the way forward at its next meeting.

l Any local firms or individuals wishing to offer a contribution to the project should contact Vivienne Francis at the Ilkley Gazette office.