The main features of our churchyard are the garden at the front of the church and the Garden of Remembrance in the rear churchyard. As is often the case the work to keep these two areas so beautiful falls on a small number of people. Two volunteers work tirelessly in the front garden and another two volunteers, Celia and Richard, have received special recognition and awards for their wonderful work in our Garden of Remembrance. The responsibility for the latter has now passed to the church and is included in the general maintenance schedules. Volunteers are very welcome to deal with the detailed work that the garden requires.

Like the Garden of Remembrance our churchyard is still open for burials and has graves dating all the way back to Victorian times. Families are encouraged to tend to the graves of their relatives in the churchyard and in the Garden of Remembrance. (See elsewhere for further on that.) With graves dating back generations volunteers are welcome to help look after some where the family line no longer continues. With enough volunteers we are hoping to complete a special short project to improve some of our older graves in the lower churchyard. There is some very interesting family history waiting to be discovered.

The grass is cut fortnightly in the main areas of the churchyard throughout the spring, summer and autumn. Because of the terrain and the nature of the churchyard a large machine cannot be used. So it takes about eight hours to cut the grass in the churchyard and even longer to strim around the gravestones. Those in the congregation who used to do this work are no longer able. The congregation now pay for the work to be done on behalf of the church and for the benefit of the wider community.

The War Memorial has received a facelift via efforts of the congregation, which Shadwell Parish Council sponsored. We have tried to create a welcoming place where people are happy to come and spend time, a peaceful contemplative space in a busy world.

The Garden of Rememberance

The Garden of Remembrance is where the cremated ashes of loved ones are interred.

In 2003 Richard Wells and Celia Wroe, both having been widowed, decided they would like their spouses' ashes interred in the Garden. It was then featureless and they were unhappy about interring the ashes there. Previous volunteers had cut the grass and planted a few trees. At that time, there were only a couple of rows of interments and the area was cordoned off. Surrounding the area were huge piles of debris, mainly soil left by undertakers when digging new graves, bricks and grass cuttings etc.

With the agreement of the Church, they landscaped the Garden to make it more welcoming. Together, they shifted the rubble and made a bed each side of the Millennium seat donated by the YCA, providing the originally plants themselves. Like many keen gardeners they wanted to expand, and with the agreement of St Paul's they set up a special fund in 2006 to raise money for immediate expenses, with the intention of securing the Garden of Remembrance for future generations, long after they would be able to do their voluntary work. Families of loved ones interred in the Garden and local residents were very generous, and Richard and Celia saw their efforts bear fruit as the Fund grew. All the day to day costs of running the garden were covered together with all the planting three times a year. The Rememberance Garden is now maintained by St Paul's Church, but it still plays a significant role in Shadwell's success in Yorkshire in Bloom. The judges always visit it and are very complimentary.

A grant from Leeds City Council Well-Being Fund, paid for a memorial stone at the garden entrance. At that entrance Celia and Richard put in a huge effort to raise a derelict gravestone, much to the delight of the two grand-daughters (in their 80's) who turned up unexpectedly. The seat at the entrance was donated by a local resident.

Despite the hard work, Celia and Richard enjoyed their endeavours and received many compliments. They created a unique, special place in keeping with the surroundings. It is a lovely tranquil garden for everyone to enjoy.