Contact Details:

INITIAL BOOKING

We are pleased that you wish to come to this Cathedral and Abbey Church for a special service. Obviously the demands upon the Abbey are high, and therefore not all requests can be accepted. Each request is considered individually, whether the service is to mark a one-off occasion or is a regular annual event. The first person to contact is the Cathedral Office Co-ordinator, who will advise on general date availability and any further consultation that may be required before confirming a date. A decision on some smaller services can be made in a matter of a few days, but larger events need to go to the Diary Planning Committee, which meets at regular intervals throughout the year – in either case the rule is simple – the sooner you contact us the better.

Once a service is booked it is best to go through the booking form with Cathedral Office Co-ordinator, either in person or by ‘phone – she will be able to advise what is feasible in the time and space available. The use of Cathedral Rooms for rehearsals, robing, entertainment, choirs etc. should also be booked through the Cathedral Office Co-ordinator at the earliest possible opportunity.

It is often best to leave the booking of a rehearsal until meeting the Minor Canon (Liturgy) as she may wish to attend.

SERVICE PLANNING

After you have completed the booking form contact the Minor Canon (Liturgy) – in ALL cases she will want to meet those planning the service. Please do not make any arrangements until that planning meeting has taken place. She may ask other Cathedral staff (eg Master of Music, Head Virger, Cathedral Warden) to attend that meeting, or she may ask you to contact them by ‘phone or in person.

ORDER OF SERVICE

The Minor Canon (Liturgy)’s main concern will be the printed order of service. This should be in draft form a month before the service – and this draft must be shown to the Minor Canon (Liturgy) – you may like to write it with her – she is very willing to help. All final copies of the printed Order of Service need to be printed at least a week before the service and six copies passed to the Minor Canon (Liturgy). Please deliver the final copies a week in advance to the Virgers’ office, and no later than the day before.

In a limited number of cases the Minor Canon (Liturgy) may find it easier to do your typesetting for you – but usually she will ask you to do it yourself. The cathedral office can print orders of service. Please speak to the Cathedral Office Co-ordinator to get a price quote and agree copy deadlines.

Special Services fall into two categories:

(1) One of the regular round of Cathedral Services (eg 11.15am on Sunday or 4pm on Saturday) that is adapted to fit the theme, or

(2) A service that happens in addition to the usual cathedral services (eg 3pm Sunday).

We will try to be flexible, but cannot guarantee that we will be able to accommodate your special service in one of our regular service slots. The advantage of (1) is that the resources of choir, organist, virgers etc. are already there, but there is less flexibility in the order of service. The readings, hymns etc can, with the agreement of the Minor Canon (Liturgy), be adapted to suit the theme. The basic structure of the service, however, cannot be radically altered. With (2) there are no resources already laid on, but with the agreement of the Minor Canon (Liturgy) the order of service can be much more flexible.

A few notes about the order of service:

(1) It should be realistic about time.

(2) It must be recognisable as a Christian act of worship, which means at the very least it must contain a reading from Scripture and a time of prayer.

(3) The title on the front cover should always say “Cathedral and Abbey Church of Saint Alban”

(4) It should tell people when to kneel, sit and stand, and make clear when they are to join in. The Minor Canon (Liturgy) will be able to help with these and other details. Please do not invite anyone to preach until the Minor Canon (Liturgy) has agreed – any invitation can only be issued with the Dean’s approval, which the Minor Canon (Liturgy) will seek on your behalf.

Normally the Canon in Residence will expect to attend a service and welcome the congregation. You may invite him to do more – and indeed any of the clergy are open to invitation, though they all have demanding schedules.

MUSIC

Any music must be agreed with the Master of the Music - sometimes the Minor Canon (Liturgy) can do this for you. This includes any musicians you are inviting to perform. If an organist is required to accompany congregational singing on the main organ, it is highly unlikely that the Master of the Music will allow a guest organist to play. Please do not be offended; accompanying a congregation on a strange organ is a difficult job for any organist however experienced, and can easily ruin a service. (The fee for the use of the organ is the same whether or not a staff organist plays it.)

On a very limited number of occasions one of the Cathedral Choirs may be able to sing (charging the usual fees).

COPYRIGHT

COPYRIGHT It is illegal to reproduce copyright lyrics during the writer’s lifetime and for 70 years after their death, without the permission of the copyright owner (the author normally) or with the authority of a licence which allows you to do this. The cathedral is licensed by Christian Copyright Licensing International. If you wish to produce an order of service which includes hymn / song words please return the enclosed copyright form and the Cathedral Office Co-ordinator will advise you as to whether the songs you want to print are covered by the licence the cathedral holds.

"STAGE MANAGEMENT"

The Head Virger will help with any “stage management”. Because of the labour and time involved, the congregational seating arrangements cannot normally be changed. Please remember that any moving of chairs and staging may attract a fee, and may require a team to work under the duty virger’s direction. Furniture must not be moved without express permission and particular care must be taken not to damage the nave platform surface. Please remember that time must be allowed between events if movement of furniture is required, and this must be booked with the Cathedral Office Co-ordinator.

Please make sure the aisles are never obstructed.

SEATING CAPACITY

Seating capacity is governed by fire regulations for each part of the building. Please observe these strictly (in some cases you may have to organise ticketing of the service) and note that they include everyone including clergy, choir etc.
Please note that this is the only reason that a service can be “private”. Although it is unlikely many will, a Christian act of worship is always open to anyone who wishes to attend – please make your stewards aware of this. It is also the custom of the Cathedral to keep other areas of the building accessible to visitors during services.

The maximum capacity is:

Nave: 1200 Crossing: 620 Lady Chapel: 220

STEWARDING

Stewarding and seating is under the direction of one of the Cathedral Wardens. You must discuss with them (sometimes the Minor Canon (Liturgy) can do this for you) how the service is to be stewarded and by whom. You should also be provided with a seating plan.

It is helpful for us to know if more than one or two people in wheelchairs are expected to attend the service – we are anxious to make provision for them. There is a disabled toilet in the South Ambulatory.

COLLECTION

You may wish to have a collection taken and you will need to consider how your stewards will do this (during a hymn, a “retiring” collection etc) – if it is a statutory service (i.e. it takes place when the Cathedral would normally have a service) we will deduct the “usual” collection for that service and any expenses due to the Cathedral. After these deductions, it may be possible to give any balance to a charity but only with the permission of the Dean and Cathedral Wardens, which can be sought by the Minor Canon (Liturgy). In other cases you may nominate where the collection is given, but in all cases it is collected, counted, expenses deducted, and a cheque issued, by the Cathedral. If there is a shortfall between expenses and collections, we will seek payment of the balance from you.

FEES

A full schedule of fees will be issued with your booking form – please read these carefully and ask if you do not understand. Obviously we do not intend to make a profit out of worship – but we must cover the costs incurred. Please make sure that you are able to meet your commitments in this regard. Please note that any sound or video recording or broadcasting of a service must be agreed in advance and will attract an additional fee.

PA

There is a public address system in all parts of the Cathedral, with an induction loop. We will usually also provide an operator. Our PA system is run entirely by volunteers who give their time freely to the Cathedral. It is therefore not usually possible for one of them to attend your rehearsal. At the rehearsal a virger will be able to put out a microphone for those reading to practise. It is therefore essential that there is a copy of the Order of Service marked up for the PA operator on the day. They will expect to put out microphones in the usual places for Abbey services (Lectern, pulpit, altar, clergy stalls). If you require more than this (e.g. radio mikes) please let the Minor Canon (Liturgy) know before the event.

FIRST AID

If you are providing stewards one of them must be appointed as first aid co-ordinator. It is best if this is a qualified first aider. They should report to the duty virger on arrival. If you expect a large attendance we recommend you arrange additional first aid cover, eg Red Cross or St John Ambulance.

VIPs

Please advise us if any VIPs are expected, especially if there are any security implications. It is our custom that, should the Mayor or other local dignitaries attend, they are met by the Dean or Canon in Residence and escorted to their seats. Other VIPs may have seats reserved for them, so please remember to brief your stewards.

FLOWERS

There are usually flowers in the Cathedral (except during Advent and Lent, when no flowers are permitted). Extra displays may be provided by the Flower Guild. The Cathedral Office Co-ordinator will put you in touch with the present head of the Guild.

ADVERTISING

The Cathedral Office Co-ordinator must approve any advertising material. She will also put up a poster for you in the Cathedral.

PARKING

Please note that there is NO PARKING in the Cathedral precincts. There are several car parks close by. Special arrangements can be made for a small number of disabled people, or VIPs with cars and drivers – please speak to the Cathedral Office Co-ordinator.

EMERGENCIES

There are emergency procedures for the Cathedral – for special services you and your stewards need to be aware of them. A member of Cathedral staff will deal with the situation – please co-operate fully with them.