A MOTHER claiming pedestrians strolled past a dead body found in a graveyard this morning has slammed them as “shameful”.

Police were called to St Laurence's Church at 10.05am following reports of a man having been found in the church cemetery by a member of the public.

Despite an ambulance being called to the scene at The Forbury the man, in his 50s, was pronounced dead at the scene.

But full time mother-of-two Joanna Hunt, of Emmer Green, said residents were “casually walking past” the body under the impression the man had passed out.

The 21-year-old said: “I wondered over there to have a look at what was going on and a woman said a man had found but people were walking past him because they thought he had passed out and didn't want to go near him.

“To think that man was actually dead or needed help before he died makes my heart break.”

She added: “It's about having common decency and those people who just carried on walking should be ashamed of themselves in my opinion.”

But despite the body being by a public footpath, workers were surprised it had not been found earlier.

Site foreman Kevin Smith of contracting company Fergal, who have been undertaking maintenance work to the church wall since early February, said: “It was a bit strange because we were working on the site and none of us saw a thing. The first we heard about it was when all the police cars turned up with an ambulance.”

A Thames Valley Police spokesman said the man's next of kin has been informed by police, who are appealing for witnesses, and a report is being prepared for the coroner. ​

She said: “We're treating the death as unexplained but not suspicious. It's very unlikely the man was assaulted.”