Saint Paul's Church, Landkey

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Covid guidance from 10th December 2021

Following the government's toughening of Covid rules on 9th December 2021, the Church of England has updated its recently-issued guidance on procedures which churches might choose to adopt to minimise the spread of infection.

The main requirement of these changes is for congregation members to wear face masks at all times during the service, even while singing. While there are no rules covering other infection-limiting procedures, we would encourage congregation members practice social distancing and to make use of the hand sanitisers available. A negative Lateral Flow Test beforehand would also be helpful, though not required.

The latest guidance, effective from 10th December 2021, is given here:

Alpha course

We will be holding an Alpha course for anyone who is interested in learning more about the Christian faith. The course is open to all and is suitable for those new to faith as well as those who would like to increase their understanding of the message of Jesus.

Sessions will be held in the church between 7pm and 9pm, starting on 1st February 2022 and will run for 11 weeks. Please get in touch via the Contact Us page if you would like to join us.

Happy New Year!

We wish all visitors to our website a happy New Year. We hope that 2022 will be a better year than the two previous Covid-affected years and that church worship will increasingly be held under normal circumstances.

We were able to hold our Carols by Candlelight service on 19th December, as well as our Christmas Mass on 24th December but, unfortunately, we were unable to hold our Nativity and Christingle services due to Covid. The Carols and Mass were quite well attended and were very enjoyable.

Services continue to be held as normal at the usual time of 10:30am (unless otherwise advertised) on Sundays and all are welcome to join us!

Revised Covid Guidance

With the Omicron Covid variant having recently been identified, the Church of England has issued fresh guidance on procedures which churches might choose to adopt to minimise the spread of infection. While there are now no firm rules to follow, we would support congregation members who wish to wear facemasks while in the building and also to practice social distancing and hand sanitising.

The current guidance is given here:

Covid restrictions - our response to their easing

Note: We are monitoring the situation with regard to the "Omicron" Covid variant. At present, we are not making any changes to our procedures for services but will issue new advice based on guidance from the Church of England if that becomes necessary. 28th November 2021.

Following the lifting of almost all remaining Covid restrictions on 19th July, St Paul's has done likewise. It has been a gradual process, though, as we want worshippers to have the opportunity to become accustomed to the new status quo and not feel uncomfortable coming to services, especially while the infection rate remains high.

The main change so far has been the re-introduction of singing which seems to be appreciated by congregation members. In addition, we are now (September 2021) offering refreshments after each service.

Our other Covid-related procedures are as follows:

• We are not actively encouraging mask wearing but recommend that worshippers bring one along to wear if they find themselves in a situation where they would prefer to do so.
• We are not planning for social distancing but are happy for people to space themselves out according to their own judgement.
• Hand sanitiser is available at the door for anyone who would like to use it.
• We no long be record the names of attendees but will retain the QR code in the porch for those who would like to check in.
• Holy Communion continues to be offered as bread only, although we may introduce the wine in a Covid-safe way soon (Sept 2021). The taking of Communion is optional, of course!

The current Church of England guidance upon which our procedures are based is available to download here:

Remembrance

Our Remembrance events, held on 14th November 2021, were well attended and began with a service in the village hall at 10am. Chris James led the service and explained in his talk how we as a nation have recognised bravery over the years. In the 19th century, bravery was typically recognised by a promotion in rank but this usually applied only to the officer class.

During the reign of Queen Victoria, it was felt that bravery by military personnel of any rank should be recognised and this was how the Victoria Cross came into being. Queen Victoria believed that the medal should bear the inscription "For Valour" rather than "For Bravery" which might imply that others lacked courage.

As many as 80 people gathered at the war memorial from 10:45am for the Act of Remembrance, also led by Chris. Wreaths were laid by Richard Beer on behalf of Landkey Parish Council and by Emma Waldron for St Paul's Church. A wreath was laid on behalf of the Cornish family, whose relation is listed on the memorial among the Fallen from World War One, by Charles Waldron.  John Stitt called out the names of the Fallen while Mike Foster and Josh Axford, respectively, read the odes, "For the Fallen" and "The Kohima Epitaph". John Hayes bore the standard on behalf of the Burma Star Association.