As I wrote last week, we spent this week considering whether we felt it would be possible to open our churches for private prayer without putting people at risk. The following decisions have been made:
Calstone and Yatebury will be open at the times they were open before Lockdown.
Cherhill will be open at normal times, but from Sunday to Wednesday each week (starting tomorrow, Monday 15th).
Heddington and Compton Bassett do not feel they can open safely yet so will remain closed for private prayer.
All the decisions were taken using the Church of England’s risk assessments, and will all be reviewed on a regular basis. This is for private prayer only. Any other use is still prohibited by the government.
The churches which are open have posters with guidelines on how to use the church safely. Could you please follow those guidelines – nothing in them should be a surprise given what we hear in the news all the time, and since our churches do not have running water, could I recommend that you wash your hands thoroughly before and after coming to the church.
We hope that this small improvement proves a comfort to some, and doesn’t put anyone at risk. Please revisit this page for future updates.
Online services will continue for the foreseeable future.
With blessings
Matt (for the various PCCs)