Baptisms

What is Baptism?

Baptism (also called christening) is the sacrament that brings new members into God’s Church. A baptism is always a joyful occasion, for the Church as well as for the family. Baptism is most often administered to infants, but anyone who has not been baptised as a child may be baptised in later life.

Who can get Baptised in our church?

For your child to be baptised in All Saints or St Edmunds church, you normally need to fulfil one of the criteria below:

• Family to reside in the parish of Wyke Regis
• A parent to be on the church electoral role of the parish
• A parent to be a regular worshipper at All Saints or St Edmunds church

You can compete our Baptism Request Form here

How can I find out if I live in the Parish of Wyke Regis All Saints with St Edmunds?

Go to A Church Near You website enter your postcode, then click on your home location on the map. Your parish church will then appear on the right hand side of the page under the text, “Churches in your area”. If this shows up: “Parish of Wyke Regis: All Saints w St Edmund . This is in the Diocese of Salisbury.”, you live in our parish.

How much does it cost?

In the parish of Wyke Regis we carry out Baptisms free of charge, we issue each youngsters with a card to mark their Baptism. If parents require a  more formal Baptism certificate a charge is made in line with nationally set fees.

For details of current Fees please go to our Church Fees page.

When do you do Baptisms?

Baptisms in the parish of Wyke Regis are carried out as follows:

• All Saints Church – 9:30am communion service on the second Sunday of the month
• St Edmunds Church – 11:00am communion service on the third Sunday of the month

What is the Pathway to Baptism in the Parish of Wyke Regis

We have now developed the following pathway for a family, to be introduced to the church and for your child to begin their journey in the Christian faith.

The first Sunday of the month at 9:30am is our family service and we ask you, as parents of the child, to attend this service with your child’s intended Godparents. Following the service, over a cup of tea, one of the Ministry Team will talk through the meaning and rite of Baptism with you. We will also go through a full rehearsal for the following Sunday and ensure that you are all as fully prepared for this special day as possible.

In the mean time we would heartily encourage you to go and have a look at the following website www.churchofenglandchristenings.org . We also recommend that you encourage all Godparents to go and look at this site so they can be fully informed about the promises they will make on the day of your child’s Baptism.

Please note that, unless in the case of emergency such as the child or parents being gravely ill, we do require you to attend both the teaching on Baptism and the rehearsal on the first Sunday of the month.

How do I book a Baptism?

In the first instance please compete our Baptism Request Form here.  We will then assess if we are able to do the Baptism. If we are able to do the Baptism a provisional booking will then be made and arrangements will be made for a Lay Pastoral Assistant to contact you, to talk about the Baptism and to fill out the relevant paperwork. It is helpful if you can tell us at this time how many people you expect to attend the Baptism so we can allocate enough seating in church.

PLEASE NOTE AT THE CURRENT TIME DUE TO THE CORONAVIRUS SITUATION WE ARE NOT DOING BAPTISMS – Please do fill in the online form and we will deal with Baptisms in the order received once the current situation has passed.

More information is available from the Church of England website here Baptisms, Weddings and Funerals

If you have any other questions that need answering please telephone 01305 784649 or click here to complete our online general enquiry form.

What Happens After my Child’s Baptism

Following your child’s Baptism, we would like to welcome you and them to come to our Toddler group which we hope to begin soon to run during school term time. The first session each month is called Toddler praise and it is held at All Saint’s Church. It is a great opportunity for your child to meet with, make friends and interact with other children from the church.

We will be in touch with the details of this following the Baptism and of course you can invite other parents and children along as well.

We hope the baptism of you child will be a special day for all of us to remember with joy and you and your family will always be welcome at your parish church.