Update as of 27th December 2020

The government’s new tiers system means that public worship can resume on the same basis as before the most recent lockdown. Accordingly there will be morning and evening prayer from Wednesday, and the Wednesday Holy Communion and Sunday services will resume. It is still a little early to plan for Christmas (!) but full details will be revealed in due course.

Your Vicar - Jonathan Collis

Face Masks in Church:

The government regulations now require masks to be worn in church by those attending. 

Newsletters for Sunday 29th November 2020 

The Roundabout Magazine for December 2020 / January 2021 is now available at the back of the church ready for when you return on Wednesday.

Service for 29th November

Hymn: 

Some of the services below on hold at the moment due to Covid Restrictions  - please see Update above

We aim to provide a wide variety of services for parishioners and visitors alike - but slightly tweaked at the moment to combat Covid:

Monday to Friday:

9.00   am   Morning Prayer

5.00   pm   Evening Prayer

Wednesday:

10.00 am   Holy Communion*

Sunday Services:

8.00   am   Holy Communion* - a traditional language service lasting about

                 40 minutes.

10.00 am   Parish Eucharist - with our choir (but no hymn singing by the                                 congregation)

                 - a junior church, and a small area at

                 the back of the church with books/crayons etc where parents can sit

                 with their younger children if they wish.  On hold during Covid

                 Service lasts for about an hour,

                   - followed by refreshments.  On hold during Covid 

6.30   pm   Evening Prayers - a smaller reflective service using the Book of Common Prayer and lasting about an hour.

*Gluten free communion wafers are available, please just ask when you come up to the altar rail.

 - We also hold a 'First Steps' service for tots. For those of you with pre-school children we have a monthly tots service here at St Augustine's at 10:45am, with songs, craft activity, story and Jaffa cakes.  This service generally falls on the 2nd Wednesday in the month.  On Hold at the moment due to Covid

The Blessed Sacrament is perpetually reserved for the Communion of the sick and dying.  Please inform the vicar of parishioners who are sick or in hospital.

Confirmation Sunday is now Sunday 13th December at 4pm

The Bishop of Bradwell will be coming to confirm at St Augustine’s on 13th December. This gives us an opportunity to consider our commitments, and off you r at 4 pm.have never get round to being confirmed (or baptised, for that matter), or you have children in year 6 or above who haven’t been confirmed, please have a word with Fr Jonathan. The service is the Church of England’s way of those who have come to maturity to affirm the promises made on their behalf at baptism, and when it is customary to begin receiving communion. We shall have mixture of adults and children this year, and preparation is done on a tailor made basis as candidates come from a variety of different backgrounds. Fr Jonathan

The vicar is always pleased to receive enquiries about christenings,

weddings and other services.

Telephone 01702 587597 or email jonathan.collis@cantab.net   

Fr Chris Giles

Fr Chris comes to visit:

On Hold at the Moment due to Covid

Fr Chris Giles and family will be coming to the 10 am service on Sunday 15th November so we can have a proper farewell for them. If you missed the chance to contribute towards a leaving gift, please pop something in a pink envelope and mark it ‘Fr Chris’. 

We are pleased and saddened by the news that our own curate Fr Chris Giles has now received an appointment to be The Rector of the Stourhead Benefice, Suffolk, between the towns of Haverhill and Clare. My Institution and induction service will be on the 29th April at St. Peter and St Paul’s Church Kedington.  Thank you all for the congratulations and good wishes I have received about my appointment as The Rector of the Stourhead Benefice, Suffolk which lies between the towns of Haverhill and Clare. Fr Chris   Note: there is a website actually called ‘Stourhead Benefice’ which gives you pictures, maps and details of the 8 rural parishes it serves.  It also has a lovely video from parishioners advertising for a new vicar!  http://stourheadbenefice.org/wordpress/  

Our congratulations and best wishes

to Fr Chris and his lovely family

The Lord's Prayer

All previous services, sermons, hymns and Lords's prayers can be found on The St Augustine's Broadcasting Service on YouTube

The church bell will still ring as a reminder that prayers are still being offered - public services may be suspended but our ministry continues.

Jonathan Collis

The Church of England has updated its guidance for churches in light of the latest advice from Public Health England. 

Please follow the link - 
 https://www.churchofengland.org/more/media-centre/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-churches#na  

Forthcoming Musical or Special  Events - on hold at this time

Chelmsford Cathedral.  The Dean of the Cathedral produces a quarterly events guide with the aim of encouraging everyone to discover what the Cathedral has to offer.  To find out more and to view the guide, please click on the link below:

www.chelmsfordcathedral.org.uk

Church Extension Update

Having obtained approval from the Diocese Advisory Committee (DAC) some months ago for our extension plans, our architects submitted a formal building application to Southend council.  We waited the seemingly obligatory 16 weeks for the council to approve the plans, only to be told that our application had been rejected.

The reasons for the rejection were to my mind, and that of our architects, relatively minor and we were extremely disappointed that the council thought it necessary to issue a formal rejection without any kind of prior notice or liaison from the council planning department.               

I arranged a follow up meeting with the council and our architects on Wednesday 30^th October to discuss the rejection and find a way forward.  Following lengthy discussion about the role of the DAC and the processes we have been through to get DAC approval for our plans, I’m happy to report that the meeting went well and I am reasonably confident that the councils objections have been addressed.  We can’t be absolutely sure because the council official we met with was not the person who rejected the plans (of course not!) but our architect will now submit a new set of plans, with minor alterations, which we hope will be approved.

Another delay is of course inevitable and we’ve been told that it could be another 16 weeks before we receive the councils response, that will be Mid February.

There won’t be much to report before then so I wish you all a very merry, albeit slightly early, merry Christmas and hope that the New Year will bring us good news!  Best wishes to you all.

Peter Barron

If any of you would like to find out more about baptism, confirmation or marriage, please don't hesitate to contact me at

jonathan.collis@cantab.net

“We are committed to ensuring that St Augustine’s is

a safe place for all”

For further information please go to our safeguarding page, the link is here