Three trial trenches were excavated by Colchester Archaeological Trusts in the grounds of Handford House (as Victorian property most recently used as an old people’s home but seriously fire damaged in 2002), 1 Queens Road, Colchester - T1-T2 in the garden and T3 in a tarmac parking area. All trenches were 1.5m wide and between 14m and 15m long. This work revealed one in situ Roman cremation (the base of an urn in T1, c.0.60m bleow ground level) and other possible cremations. A spread of white/pink mortar (F3) was recorded at the base of the eastern end of T2. Towards the centre of the trench, this layer became more mixed with the orange natural sand and gravel (L5). The mortar spread F3 was sealed by L4 and could be Roman, possibly from a floor. Modern or post-medieval gardening activity and the digging of pits for rubbish-disposal may have destroyed other cremations on the site. <1> Excavations were carried out in 2003-5 during the groundworks for a new residential development. <2>