St Catherine’s Centre Activities

We are pleased to announce that St Catherine’s Centre (both Hall and Church) is open for hire and holding meetings from the 1st of September.  We will be following Government guidelines as we continue to explore how best to operate in a Corvid safe manner as our users return.

We have been holding Sunday Services in the Church building, in a Corvid-secure environment, for a while now.

In addition, the Café is now open on Thursdays and Fridays with a reduced service.

Accordingly, we are now exploring the best way to open the Hall for use by groups, in a safe manner.

We are asking all groups to undertake additional responsibilities to try and ensure a Corvid-secure environment.  As part of this will are temporarily splitting the centre into two zones.  We ask Hall users to enter via the southern, road side entrance and Church users to enter via the northern, car park side entrance.

In accordance with Government Guidelines, most Hall and Church users will be expected to wear face coverings while they are inside the building.

We totally understand that some groups and some individuals will not consider it appropriate to attend or re-start at this time.

Activities will resume when each group thinks best for their users.  Please chat to your group organiser for details.

Tuesday get Together – Restarting Tuesday 1st September

We are pleased to announce that Tuesday get Together is restarting on Tuesday 1st September in the Café area of St Catherine’s.

We will be following corvid-secure guidelines.  This means that we request that you wear a face covering as you enter the building, sanitise your hands upon arrival, sign in for track and trace purposes, and follow social distancing guidelines while in the Café.

We are stressing that as over 70s are still advised to be very careful in their socialising, that any decision to come is entirely of their own choosing.

Sunday Worship – 23rd August

St Catherine of Siena ChurchIn addition to our on-line service, we have been holding a simple, spoken worship service in church at 10am for a few Sundays now.

As attendance at this physical service has grown, we are now introducing a booking system.

If you would like to attend please let Rev Gill know before 12 noon on Saturday, or email us here at info@stcatherines-tilehurst.org.uk . If you turn up without booking, you may still be able to attend, but be prepared for the unlikely possibility that we may not be able to fit you in!

Please remember to wear a face mask. Strict social distancing is in place, and Covid-19 guidelines have been implemented. Government advice is that 70+ be encouraged to stay at home – but it is the individuals decision as to whether you attend.

Our separate on-line service continues as usual at 10am, and can be found at  www.facebook.com/st.catherines.tilehurst/live/

Café Siena – reopening

After careful consideration, we are delighted to announce that we are going to reopen the cafe from this week (August 6th).

Initially a soft opening on Thursdays and Fridays 10.30-13.30 with a reduced menu (hot and cold drinks, cakes, soups, and sandwiches).

Extra safety measures will be in place to help safeguard the well-being of all.  Please wear face coverings to come and go!   Entrance by the car park (north) door only!   Limited seating, including tables and chairs outdoors weather permitting.

Sunday Worship – 2nd August

You can join us for worship in two ways this Sunday, 2nd August:

10.00 am On-line Worship service, with worship songs and lively preaching

10.00 am Communion at St Catherine’s, This will be a simple spoken service, with no singing. In keeping with regulations, chairs will be set at socially distanced spaces, and only wafers will be offered.  If you would like to attend, please wear a face mask. (There will be no service leaflets – but words will be on the screens, in keeping with guidelines.)  The limit for attending will be 24 people.

St Catherine’s is complying with COVID-19 guidance.  Windows will be open, seats cleaned before and afterwards, the accessible toilet will be available.  You will need to be signed-in for track and trace purposes.  Government advice is that 70+ be encouraged to stay at home – but it is the individual decision as to whether you attend.  All are welcome!

This doesn’t set a precedent, and it doesn’t mean that regular communion services will now be reintroduced, as we need to be wise and there are lots of factors to take into account – and guidance keeps changing!

However, for now, we look forward to seeing you in person, or engaging with you online this Sunday!