A father from Manchester, whose baby son died in 1977, finally found his son's grave in Failsworth Cemetery on Monday this week, with the help of his rabbi.
The father, who asked not to be identified, said: "We were told the baby would be buried with a man, because it was a baby boy. We were told to forget about it. The rabbi found it within the hour, and it's an individual grave, not even marked. I've stood a few yards from it when I've visited before and never known. There are many children's graves there. There will be many other people in Manchester to whom this happened."
Rabbi Yehuda Brodie of the Manchester Beth Din said he was not aware of such a practice being sanctioned in Manchester. Today, he said, parents were supported by rabbis to make whatever decision they needed regarding the burial of stillborns and early-death babies.
