We are still open
St Paul's church will remain open throughout November for individual
prayer, between 12.00 Noon and 2.00pm and when church welcomers will be
on duty. Visitors are invited in to come in to pray, light a candle or
simply for quiet time. Regrettably all worship has been suspended from
Thursday November 5th until further notice.
All the necessary precautions a in place to ensure to everyone's safety
and we kindly ask visitors to wear face coverings and sanitise their
hands on entry and exit to the church. We look forward to welcoming you.
|
 |
Faculty notices
Faculty notices relating to our installation of full Wi-Fi in St Paul's
|
|
|
Details of church worship
When the church reopens the following protocols will apply.
 |
|
The church will be open at 09:45am for the
Eucharist which starts at 10.15am.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The wearing of face-coverings is now
mandatory.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
A limit of 60 people can be seated in the main
body of the church. Seating has been arranged to accommodate a
mix of individuals, couples and families. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Social distancing rules apply. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The service will be a Said Eucharist. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
We ask members of the congregation to enter
through the North door and exit through the West door, making
sure to use hand-sanitiser on arriving and leaving and before
receiving Communion. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Communion will be received standing at the front
of the Nave and will be given in one kind only. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
After the service please leave via the
West-door, no refreshments will be provided until further
notice. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Worshippers' details will be taken and kept for
21 days to facilitate Track and Trace, if necessary. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Worshippers are reminded to self-isolate if
there is a confirmed case of Covid-19 in the household. |
|
|
|
|
|
St Paul's Church is awarded 'Major Parish Church' statusSt
Paul's church in the centre of Bedford is celebrating its award as a
Major Parish Church and being granted membership of the Major Churches
Network, in recognition of its importance to the town.
The Major Churches Network is a body set up by the Church of England
which comprises 350 of the largest and most significant churches across
England which are not cathedrals but fulfil many of the same functions
within their communities and includes some of the best loved places of
worship around the UK.
There are strict qualifying criteria to become a member such as being a
building of exceptional significance (often Grade I listed), being open
daily to visitors, to have a role which goes beyond a normal parish
church by fulfilling an important civic and cultural role and by making
an economic contribution to their local area.
St Paul's qualifies in all categories - it is the biggest religious
building in the St Albans Diocese after St Albans Cathedral, the civic
and county church of Bedfordshire, and it plays host to events and
concerts throughout the year. For the past year the new Bedford Visitor
Information Centre - which replaced the old Tourist Information when it
closed - has also been based inside the main body of the church.
Canon Fr Kevin Goss, Vicar of St Paul's said: "We are delighted to
have received this recognition and to have been officially designated a
member of the Major Churches Network. We welcome thousands of visitors
every year and would hope this affiliation will boost the church's
profile further, and in doing do attract more visitors into Bedford."
St Paul's is already a member of
Cathedrals Plus, a body that promotes
cathedrals, abbeys, shrines and major churches which already receive
large numbers of visitors. The church is well-known locally for hosting
the annual Christmas Tree Festival in conjunction with Bedford Hospitals
Charity, attracting around 5000 visitors over the five day event.
|
|
|
|
More news and events can be found in our
Archived News and
Events page. |
News & Events
