Moves are under way to evict a family of badgers believed to be responsible for digging up bones in a church graveyard.

The parish council has been given permission by Natural England to put in a one-way gate at the entrance to the sett next to the closed graveyard of St Remigius Church, in Long Clawson.

The badgers' activities hit the national headlines last October when it was revealed that at least four graves had been disturbed and skulls, leg and arm bones were found in a ditch on the edge of the graveyard.

A child took home a human leg bone, thinking it was a stick.

Natural England initially refused permission for a gate to stop the animals returning to the sett, fearing it could make the problem worse and cause more damage to a historic moat wall.

In January a mystery caller rang the local vicar to tell him the problem had been solved by the "Big Society" and there was no sign of the badgers for a while.

But there has since been evidence since that the badgers are still in residence.

To discourage the badgers from using the sett, Clawson Hose and Harby Parish Council has put in a one-way gate and netting around it.

Chairman John Machin said: "The problem is if we evict them from there they will go elsewhere. I think this will be an ongoing problem.

"We've already spent hundreds of pounds removing vegetation from the site.

"We're going to put more netting down to try and stop them digging into the bank, but there's evidence that the badgers have been there for years."

Roger Adams, of the parochial church council, said: "The parish council has made an attempt to exclude the badgers and it was successful for a while.

"But they came back and dug another hole next to the other one and they're back in the original sett, so it's an ongoing saga.

"The netting put down is not sufficient, it doesn't cover a big enough area, so they can dig five yards away and get into the sett by another route.

"The concern is that if they don't exclude the badgers before the end of the mating and nesting season, they might not be able to exclude them before next summer. It is a continuing problem"

Dr David Duckett, chairman of the Leicestershire Badger Group, said: "In closing a sett down there is always a risk that they'll dig in again."

Leicestershire police wildlife officer Neil Hughes, said: "The parish council is working with the Leicestershire Badger Group to legally get the badgers out of the churchyard. I am not taking any more action. They were still there last time we went up, there was still evidence of badgers last winter and earlier this year.

"The Leicestershire Badger Group is working with the parish council to legally alleviate the problem."