Human remains have been uncovered as part of the gas company excavation work going on next to St Saviour's Church in Dartmouth.

The bones, almost certainly interred as part of a once much larger church graveyard, has already been disturbed once during past excavation work in the Anzac Street area just yards from the 14th Century church.

Archaeologists, who have been monitoring the gas company project to replace gas pipes, believe the remains were part of graves sited just a quarter of a metre below the road level – showing that the churchyard once extended beyond its present boundary.

The bones were uncovered last week as the Wales and West Utilities staff were engaged in their second week of excavations in the area of the church.

Archaeologist Laurie Coleman, from Cirencester-based Cotswold Archaeology, said the remains had been found in a trench which had been dug some time in the past and then filled in. She said: 'To the south west of the church, excavation within the fill of an existing service trench identified disturbed human burials at a depth of 0.25m below the modern street surface.

'The discovery indicates that the churchyard extended to the west of its current boundary and the shallow depth suggests that the area has been subject to landscaping or regrading in the past.'

She added: 'The remains of the walls of the cellar of a post-medieval building were identified to the north west of the church and this find provides information on the earlier street layout.'

She pointed out that the archaeological features were fully recorded before gas main replacement works proceeded.

The excavation work is part of Wales and West Utilities' multi-million pound, 30-year replacement programme which is going on across the south west and Wales and involves installing new non-corroding plastic pipes will have a lifespan of more than 80 years.

Cotswold Archaeology is monitoring the gas main replacement work in the vicinity of St Saviour's Church in a watching brief which is required by Devon County Council as the works are taking place within the historic core of the town.