A PLANNING application has been submitted for a Fife Babies Memorial Garden in Dunfermline's Public Park.

It will be an area of remembrance, featuring a metal sculpture, native trees, shrubs and wildflowers with an engraved poem at the centre, for all infants who were cremated but their ashes were not returned to their parents.

Fife Council's bereavement services put in the plans after councillors in February voted 6-4 in favour of allowing a change of use of common good land.

Their planning agent, DWA Landscape Architects, said: "The project has a particular sensitivity to it through the subject matter at its heart, and great efforts have been made to date to build a consensus amongst the parents for whom the memorial is intended for but also in the wider community to ensure, as far as possible, that stakeholders and interested parties are comfortable with the project design and its intentions."

The 'baby ashes scandal' broke in 2012 when it was discovered that ashes were not routinely returned to Scottish families following the cremation of infants.

Fife Council formally apologised to the families and said they were "deeply sorry" for the "considerable hurt and pain" that they had caused and for the way Dunfermline and Kirkcaldy crematoria operated in the past.

The Fife Babies Memorial Working Group, established as an advisory group to represent the interests of the parents, wanted to find a suitable location for a memorial and the Public Park was selected last summer.

READ MORE: Councillors split over location of Public Park memorial

The site is just over 2,000 square metres in size

The artwork with a Celtic Knot design will be the centrepiece of the garden with new paths and space nearby "for sitting and reflection" with wider views over the park and city.

A single feature ring of Scottish whinstone with a poem shot blasted into the surface – which "should be impervious to damage" – is proposed around the sculpture.

A second, smaller seating area for contemplation is also proposed with a memorial tree feature, with the names of individual babies engraved on the leaves should parents wish it.

Depressingly, the possibility of vandalism meant the design and materials used for the sculpture had to be "specifically considered".

When it came to the vote in February, councillors were split over the site in Public Park.

The City of Dunfermline area committee was told that while no-one had an issue with it being in the park, the precise location, a flat area close to the railway station, children's playpark and bandstand, was a problem.

Cllr Derek Glen said it was likely to affect a "broad number of existing users" and called for further discussions but others said there had already been widespread consultation and agreed a change of use of common good land to allow the garden to go ahead.

The next step is now planning consent.