Notices
When the government announced that churches could be open for private prayer, no one had time to do all the necessary preparation to ensure the safety of anyone wishing to visit for prayer. At the time I had pulled a muscle in my back and was in no fit state to do the necessary moving of furniture and cleaning. The PCC met via "zoom" to discuss this and the feeling at the time was that we should not open for several reasons which I will happily discuss with you if you choose to ring me.
Since then I have been into church to carry out a risk assessment and measure 2 metre distances between chairs. I have found that we can have 1,2 or even 3 people of the same household on every third row. This means that if people sit singly we can seat 10 people, if 2 from the same household, 20 people and if 3 from the same household, 30 people. I suspect that we would have a mixture of mainly 1s and 2s. Rev'd Chris and I have moved chairs and cordoned off seating that cannot be used. I intend to call another PCC meeting to see if people feel safe to proceed once I have completed the floor marking (we need a 1 way system with arrows indicating the direction of travel). There will be a separate entry and exit door. We will need an absolute minimum of 2 stewards but preferably 3. Now that Amy is joining us we may be able to proceed. I will update you after meeting PCC.
The government have said that from 4th July we can meet for services but please be aware, services will definitely not be as they were. I'm still waiting for specific information for churches in Manchester Diocese but here is part of a statement from the Bishop of London:
“We will not be returning to normality overnight - this is the next step on a journey. We’ve been planning carefully, making detailed advice available for parishes to enable them to prepare to hold services when it is safe and practical to do so. It is important to say that the change in Government guidance is permissive, not prescriptive.
Not all church buildings will be ready to hold regular services from 4 July 2020 but we are providing whatever support we can to enable them. There will still be restrictions and we must all still do everything we can to limit the spread of the virus to protect each other, especially the most vulnerable. The online services and dial-in worship offerings we have become used to will continue.
Churches and cathedrals have risen to the recent challenges, finding new ways of meeting for worship, of serving our neighbours, and of reaching new people with the love of God. The challenge before us now is to take the next steps carefully and safely, without forgetting all that we’ve discovered about God and ourselves on the way.”
Read the full statement from Bishop Sarah Mullally here.
Bishop David has also welcomed this development and reaffirmed his commitment that Manchester Diocese will to continue to provide updated guidance advice and support to parishes and clergy over the coming days and weeks. The diocesan guidance will reflect the detail of the Church of England advice once it is available after detailed Government guidance is published.
When I get more specific information re services in Manchester Diocese, I will let you know.
Not all church buildings will be ready to hold regular services from 4 July 2020 but we are providing whatever support we can to enable them. There will still be restrictions and we must all still do everything we can to limit the spread of the virus to protect each other, especially the most vulnerable. The online services and dial-in worship offerings we have become used to will continue.
Churches and cathedrals have risen to the recent challenges, finding new ways of meeting for worship, of serving our neighbours, and of reaching new people with the love of God. The challenge before us now is to take the next steps carefully and safely, without forgetting all that we’ve discovered about God and ourselves on the way.”
Read the full statement from Bishop Sarah Mullally here.
Bishop David has also welcomed this development and reaffirmed his commitment that Manchester Diocese will to continue to provide updated guidance advice and support to parishes and clergy over the coming days and weeks. The diocesan guidance will reflect the detail of the Church of England advice once it is available after detailed Government guidance is published.
When I get more specific information re services in Manchester Diocese, I will let you know.
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