Source: Auckland Council
Cemeteries are special and sacred places to honour and reflect on loved ones who have passed.
Auckland Council takes pride in providing cemetery services across Tāmaki Makaurau for Aucklanders.
Taryn Crewe, General manager Parks and Communities Facilities oversees the council’s cemetery network. She says cemeteries are an integral part of the social and cultural fabric of Auckland.
“Cemeteries are important places for individuals and families to connect with and remember those who have gone before. They are places for peaceful contemplation and quiet, places to pray, grieve and pay respect to our loved ones.
“Auckland Council cemeteries provide a wide range of options, which reflects the preferences, needs and beliefs of our diverse communities. We therefore recognise that future planning is not simply about space for more burial plots.”
Waikaraka Park Cemetery.
Auckland’s cemetery network
Auckland Council’s cemetery network is extensive. We own and operate 53 cemeteries across the region, covering 287 acres.
There are three main large cemeteries, we call “hub cemeteries”: These are Manukau Memorial Gardens, North Shore Memorial Park and Waikumete Cemetery.
The three hub cemeteries are among the 30 operational cemeteries across the region and are also home to the three council-operated crematoria in Tāmaki Makaurau.
Eighty per cent of council-administered burials in the region are carried out across the three hub cemeteries. The other burials are delivered across the 27 other cemeteries.
Each year, Auckland Council carries out approximately: 1500 burials, 1000 ash burials and 2400 cremations. As well as this we host around 800 chapel services and 450 lounge hires.
We have a team of 40 staff based across these three sites, including customer service representatives, sextons and managers.
Manukau Memorial Gardens.
Where’s Auckland’s cemetery capacity at in 2025?
As the largest provider of cemetery services in the Auckland region, Auckland Council has a statutory duty under the Burial and Cremation Act to ensure adequate cemetery capacity for the city.
Mrs Crewe assures Aucklanders there will be room to bury loved ones in Auckland now and into the future.
“As Auckland’s population continues to grow, so too does the pressure on our cemetery network.
“There is plenty of space across the council’s cemetery network for more burials for at least the next 20 years.
“We are also planning ahead now to ensure burial capacity for Auckland for decades to come across the region.”
“As the largest provider of cemetery services in the Auckland region, capacity for future cemetery needs – not just burial but also cremation, memorialisation and facilities like chapels and venues – is important to Auckland Council.
“We’re currently in a fact-finding and scoping phase of a piece of work that will look at our region’s future needs and the role the council plays in addressing them.
“This includes looking at trends, provision requirements and what other suppliers in the sector are planning, and looking at how that sits alongside our region’s growth.”
North Shore Memorial Gardens has burial capacity for at least the next 20 years and Manukau Memorial Gardens has capacity for at least another eight years.
In the city’s west, there’s currently no room left at Waikumete Cemetery for Aucklanders to purchase a burial plot. We’ll talk more about Waikumete in the next section.
What’s going on with Waikumete Cemetery?
Waikumete Cemetery in Glen Eden was established in 1886 and is the largest cemetery in New Zealand.
Alongside the primary function of the cemetery for burials, the site plays a vital role as the largest urban park in west Auckland.
Ongoing management of Waikumete needs to optimise the park’s diverse and rich values which include heritage, social history, recreation use, significant ecological values, environmental resilience, landscape and visual amenity, and identity.
After well over a century of use, Waikumete has run out of burial space, but new burial plots are on the horizon.
The cemetery has numerous pre-purchased plots that are yet to be used and we will re-open burial plots for second burials when requested by the plot owner.
Resource consent has been granted for the expanded burial plot area (approximately 800 burial plots) at Waikumete Cemetery. The cemetery is planning on offering new adult burials in early 2027 -the exact timing is dependent on factors like the weather (for development work) and any other things that need to be addressed as part of the development process. These will be general burial plots and sold on-need. They cannot be pre-purchased.
We know we need more burial capacity than this in West Auckland and that’s why we’re planning a major new cemetery further up in the northwest.
Major new cemetery planned for Reweti
The council has identified a block of land for a new cemetery in Auckland’s rural north west.
Following extensive site assessments beginning in 2019, the parcel of privately owned land at 1080 State Highway 16, Reweti, was identified as the most suitable location for a new cemetery in northwest Auckland.
In 2022, the council approached the private landowner to discuss the purchase of the site at market value, following a resolution from the then Parks, Arts, Community and Events Committee.
In December 2024, the council issued a notice of intent to acquire the land under the Public Works Act 1981. The private landowner has lodged an objection with the Environment Court. We will continue to follow the legal process while also working with relevant parties.
It’s too early to say exactly how many burial plots the site could potentially provide, until further planning is completed, however, we expect this block of land will be able to provide at least 50 to 60 year’s of burial capacity for the west and northwest Auckland area.
“We are looking at emerging trends in global and local burial practices to look at how we can make the most out of the space we acquire for this critical kaupapa,” says Mrs Crewe.
Engagement with mana whenua
Beginning in 2022, Auckland Council began engaging with mana whenua about our intention to acquire the land at Reweti for a cemetery.
Preliminary engagement on the process took place through a council-led mana whenua forum. We acknowledge that direct engagement with local iwi and hapū, including with Whiti Te Rā o Reweti Marae, could have been more comprehensive.
In the past week we have talked with and met directly with the Reweti Marae and Ngā Maunga Whakahii – the Post Settlement Governance entity for Ngāti Whātua o Kaipara on a number of occasions.
The issue was also raised at an Auckland Council Governing Body / Houkura joint meeting and a general update was provided.
Two main meetings were held with Reweti Marae and Ngā Maunga Whakahii.
Auckland Council will continue to keep Reweti Marae and Ngā Maunga Whakahii informed around this.
Nick Turoa, Tumaki Huanga Māori, Nga Matarae at Auckland Council says the council is committed to working in partnership with iwi and local communities
“We acknowledge the concerns raised by Reweti Marae and Ngā Maunga Whakahii o Kaipara from this proposal and recognise that more direct and meaningful conversations with local iwi and hapū should have taken place earlier. We are actively working to strengthen these relationships, ensure they are provided with up-to-date information about the current acquisition process, and explore opportunities to work with them going forward.
“Reweti and the surrounding whenua, including Pukeatua maunga, hold deep cultural and historical significance for Te Taoū and Ngāti Whātua. We understand the importance of this landscape, recognise the losses that Te Taoū have endured over the years, and remain committed to working in partnership with iwi and local communities to ensure that future decisions for this space respect both the need for cemetery space and the mana of this whenua.”
