![[Saint Laurence]](/saintlaurence.png)
Arrangements for reopening the church after Covid-19 lockdown
We are pleased to have returned to near-normal liturgies following many months of Covid-affected Mass arrangements. The church is also now open as normal for individual prayer.
Please do not come to church if you have any Covid symptoms. All Masses continue to be available through Live Streaming.
Coffee after 11am Mass has now resumed.
We have also retained the ‘virtual’ coffee and chat each Sunday after 11am Mass using Zoom, which you can join by clicking HERE or by entering the following details into the Zoom app:
| Meeting ID: | 937 4813 6619 |
| Passcode: | 222496 |
Arrangements for Mass
Here is some advice and information about current Masses.
- We continue to follow Covid protocols for the distribution of communion.
- We aim to keep the church ventilated. At least one window on each side of the church should be open during busier Masses – please do not close them. Please feel free to open a window if this has been forgotten at any Mass.
- We do not require face coverings but welcome all who wish to continue wearing them. Disposable masks should be available in the porch for people who wish to wear a covering but have forgotten to bring one.
- For Holy Communion, please remove any face covering before you reach the minister – you can replace it once communion has been taken. As a reminder of the Canon Law regarding communion: you must always consume the host immediately, before moving away from the minister. It is not permitted to carry the host back to your seat, or keep it to consume later.
- All benches are now in use. Where possible, we suggest maintaining some space between groups seated in the same bench and avoiding kneeling immediately behind someone who is seated.
- If you are looking for a quieter Mass where social distancing is easier, we recommend the 6pm Sunday vigil, 8am Sunday Mass, or any weekday Mass.
- Hand sanitisation is available for use on entering and leaving church.
- Children’s liturgies have now restarted at the 9.30 Mass on Sundays. Resources for children are also available from CAFOD.
- The toilets are open − we remind you that young children must be accompanied.
Your support and prayers are greatly appreciated at this time, as we work together to improve this experience.
An opportunity to contribute to the discussion on how to improve these arrangements will be provided at each Parish Open Meeting, which all are welcome to join. Follow the Open Meetings link on the left for more details.
Individual Prayer
The church is now open as normal for individual prayer.
We ask that you do not enter the church premises if you are unwell, particularly if you are experiencing a high temperature, a new continuous cough, sneezing, sore throat, loss of sense of smell or taste, or if you have been in contact with anyone with these symptoms in the last two weeks.
We encourage you to clean your hands with the supplied sanitiser on entering and leaving the church.
The toilets are open – we remind you that young children must be accompanied.
As always you will need to ensure your car registration has been entered on the keypad if you are staying for more than 30 minutes Monday-Saturday.
We hope that by working effectively together, we can continue to keep the church operating safely for private prayer and Mass.