A Warm Welcome to worship at St. Peter’s. Our purpose is to reach out within the community, worshipping Christ and welcoming all.

Services & Worship This Week

Sunday 22nd February – The First Sunday of Lent
  • 8.00am – Service of Holy Communion (Book of Common Prayer)
  • 9.30am – Parish Eucharist (Common Worship) with Children’s Church
  • 4.00pm – Evening Worship
Wednesday 25th February
  • 10.00am – Parish Eucharist
  • 11.00am – Lent Course in the Mulberry Room
  • 2.00pm – Julian Prayer Meeting in St John’s Chapel in Church
Thursday 26th February
  • 7.30pm – Lent Course in the Mulberry Room
Friday 27th February
  • 11.30am – Funeral of Joyce Finch in Church
Saturday 28th February
  • 5.00pm – Deanery Confirmation Service at St Luke’s Church, Ramsgate
Sunday 1st March – The Second Sunday of Lent
  • 9.30am – Parish Eucharist (Common Worship) with Children’s Church
The Church is open every weekday morning from 10.00am to 12 noon.
The Collect for The First Sunday of Lent Heavenly Father, your Son battled with the powers of darkness, and grew closer to you in the desert: help us to use these days to grow in wisdom and prayer that we may witness to your saving love in Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen. Post Communion Prayer Lord God, you have renewed us with the living bread from heaven; by it you nourish our faith, increase our hope, and strengthen our love: teach us always to hunger for him who is the true and living bread, and enable us to live by every word that proceeds from out of your mouth; through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

Please pray for

Prayers for healing
Sarah Arrowsmith, Sue Barker, Tony Bridges, Gordon Burley, Jackie Carman, Laura Cook, Arthur Cotton, Teddy Cotton, Betty Davis, Rev’d Jan Durrans, Sue Evans, Eve Frampton, Karen Gilman, Helen Greenfield, Bill Hammond, Brian Heard, Matthew Jacques, Christopher Knight, Katherine Parker-Vaughan, John Parsons, John Reid, Kay Rivens, Jim Shoobridge, his wife and family, Veronica Taylor, Monica Titchener, Dan White, Susan White, Lucy Wood.

Those who have died recently
Joyce Finch, Ian Kinnis, June Proffitt, Brian Sleightholm, Richard Taylor, Peter Wootton ….and all those relatives and friends who are mourning the loss of their loved ones.

Reading 1

Genesis 3.1-7
Now the serpent was more crafty than any other wild animal that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, ‘Did God say, “You shall not eat from any tree in the garden”?’ The woman said to the serpent, ‘We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden; but God said, “You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the middle of the garden, nor shall you touch it, or you shall die.” ’ But the serpent said to the woman, ‘You will not die; for God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.’ So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate; and she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate. Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made loincloths for themselves.

Reading 2

Romans 5.12-19
Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death came through sin, and so death spread to all because all have sinned— sin was indeed in the world before the law, but sin is not reckoned when there is no law. Yet death exercised dominion from Adam to Moses, even over those whose sins were not like the transgression of Adam, who is a type of the one who was to come. But the free gift is not like the trespass. For if the many died through the one man’s trespass, much more surely have the grace of God and the free gift in the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, abounded for the many. And the free gift is not like the effect of the one man’s sin. For the judgement following one trespass brought condemnation, but the free gift following many trespasses brings justification. If, because of the one man’s trespass, death exercised dominion through that one, much more surely will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness exercise dominion in life through the one man, Jesus Christ. Therefore just as one man’s trespass led to condemnation for all, so one man’s act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all. For just as by the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous.

Reading 3

Matthew 4.1-11
Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. He fasted for forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was famished. The tempter came and said to him, ‘If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.’ But he answered, ‘It is written, “One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.” ’ Then the devil took him to the holy city and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying to him, ‘If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down; for it is written, “He will command his angels concerning you”, and “On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.” ’ Jesus said to him, ‘Again it is written, “Do not put the Lord your God to the test.” ’ Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendour; and he said to him, ‘All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Away with you, Satan! for it is written, “Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.” ’ Then the devil left him, and suddenly angels came and waited on him.

Go in peace to love and serve the Lord.

PARISH NEWS

Prayers for Healing Update – As described in the insert during December, we are proposing that the people named on this list will be those requesting prayer for acute illness or present need.  The names here will be reviewed every eight weeks, but of course may stay for as long as people wish: nobody’s name will be removed from the list without their express request.  Those with long-term or chronic illness will no longer be listed here as their need is different; they will be prayed for separately by a small team of intercessors, unless they have specifically requested to remain.  Rev’d Alice.

St Peter’s Church Bible Study Group – Our Group is taking a short break until after Easter, but do come and join us at the St Peter’s Lent Course (see separate notice).

St Peter’s Lent Course – You are invited to explore the art of Holy Week and Easter in a relaxed and friendly environment.  A four-week course running on Wednesday mornings at 11.00am on 25th February, 4th, 11th and 18th March and Thursday evenings at 7.30pm on 26th February, 5th, 12th and 19th March in the Mulberry Room in the Portland Centre (opposite the entrance to the Co-op).  For more information, please contact Rev’d Matt.

A reminder that St Peter’s Lunch Club is meeting on Monday 2nd March.  Please note that that St Peter’s Lunch Club will not be meeting in April or May.

World Day of Prayer – A Service for Everyone is taking place on Friday 6th March at 2.00pm in Our Lady Star of the Sea Hall, Broadstairs Road, Broadstairs, CT10 2RH.  All are welcome and there will be refreshments afterwards.

A Bereavement Support Group takes place at St Peter’s on the second Monday of each month in the Main Hall for anyone who has lost a loved one.  Come and join us for support and shared experiences within a safe and welcoming group.  For people of any faith or none.  The next one takes place on Monday 9th March (10.30am-12 noon) and everyone is welcome!

Join us for Compline, a beautiful and reflective service of prayers and Bible readings, on the 3rd Sunday of each month.  The next date for Compline is Sunday 15th March at 7.30pm.

Are there four kind people in St Peter’s village?  I am sure there are, certainly many more than four.  We are trying to hold another Open Gardens event in the village but need some gardeners to come forward.  It would only be for a few hours on the afternoon of Sunday 7th June.  I need at least six gardens for the event to be viable, so far I only have two!  Just four more and we can go ahead.  If you can help please phone (01843) 604700 (answerphone) or email s.brooks231@btinternet.com .  Thank you, Sue Brooks.

St Peter’s Women’s Group meets on the 1st and 3rd Tuesday of the month in the Portland Centre at 7.30pm.  Come along as a member’s guest or join us and see if you enjoy the evening and would like to attend more often.

St Peter’s Toddler Group meets during term time on Thursday mornings from 9.30am-11.00am in the Main Hall.  We are always looking for more volunteers to support this great community group, so if you are able to spare a couple of hours every month please let either Rev’d Matt know or Laura in the Parish Office.

We are delighted to announce that our Charity Partners for 2026, as chosen by the PCC, are ACTS (Active Christianity in Thanet Schools) and the Mission Aviation Fellowship.  Our Young People have chosen the Dogs Trust as their chosen charity.  We will be publishing more information about these particular charities on our noticeboards in Church very soon.

Thanet Food Link – Our Church has a permanent collection point for the foodbank, which you can use to donate 365 days a year.  Currently, their most needed items are: tinned tomatoes, tinned soup, tinned fruit, tinned vegetables, cereal, pasta, rice, biscuits, tea bags (box of 80), coffee instant (100g jar).  Thank you.

The Homeless – Now that the weather is cold again, I will be collecting hats, scarves, gloves, socks and any thermal wear for rough sleepers which I will give to The Salvation Army.  There is a box in our Church in the same pew as the foodbank donations.  Thank you, June Binfield, junebinfield@outlook.com

Open Church – Our Church building is open every weekday from 10.00am-12 noon.  Do pop in whenever you are passing by.

Those who remember John Cox may like to know that his family has donated some of his ‘religious’ books to us,  in case anyone would like one as a keepsake.  They are in the Parish Office – please ask Laura.

To check your eligibility and apply for a Canterbury Cathedral Pass, see https://www.canterbury-cathedral.org/visit/the-cathedral-pass/ .

Canterbury Cathedral has introduced free day-entry tickets for those in receipt of Universal Credit or Pension Credit.  For further details see https://www.canterbury-cathedral.org/news/posts/free-sightseeing-entry-universal-credit-day-ticket/ .

If you are Chair of one of our Church Committees and have a meeting coming up, please forward details to vicarpa@stpeterinthanet.org.uk so that the details can be included in the Pew Sheet or News Sheet.

If you would like to receive by email our weekly Pew Sheet and News Sheet with details of services and events, please register your email address with the Parish Office (parishoffice@stpeterinthanet.org.uk).  You can also check out and follow us on Facebook.  Thank you.

Fundraising

Upcoming Events:

Boot Fair -Saturday 28th February (tables are sold out but doors open at 9.00am for the general public)

Boot Fair -Saturday 28th March

Bake Sale -Saturday 18th April (10.00am-1.00pm)

Quiz Night -Friday 15th May (details to follow)

…………………………………………………..

Bric-a Brac – We have our own tables at the monthly Boot Fairs and our supply of good quality items is running low.  Donations would be welcome and can be brought to the Parish Office, thank you.

There is something for children every Sunday at St Peter’s!  Children’s Church runs on the 1st, 3rd and 4th Sundays (and 5th Sunday when this occurs); featuring stories, crafts, games and songs.  It takes place during the main Sunday service for all children aged 2+ (any under 2’s are welcome too but need to be accompanied by an adult).  The group will go out during the first hymn and return for Holy Communion.  Then on the 2nd Sunday of the month we have Sunday Praise – a relaxed, all age service for everyone (where our children stay in the Church throughout).  We look forward to welcoming you!

Morning Prayer is held via Zoom on Monday mornings at 9.15am.  For the Zoom link, please contact Rev’d Alice at revalice@stpeterinthanet.org.uk .

At the moment, we have three Home Groups which are meeting regularly.  If you are interested in joining a group please have a chat with Rev’d Matt or one of the contacts listed below:

  • Monday:  The Monday Home Group is taking a short break from its meetings until after Easter.  We hope members of the group will instead join the St Peter’s Lent Course.

Michael and Elspeth Cooke (01843) 863293.

  • Tuesday:  This group meets weekly on a Tuesday evening at 7.30pm.

Ian and Rita Dunn (01843) 865340.

  • Wednesday:  This group meets on the first Wednesday afternoon of the month at 2.30pm.

June Binfield (01843) 861286 or 07711 072233.

Julian Prayer Meetings – Please note that we will be meeting in the Lady Chapel from now on, and will be delighted if you can join us.  Meetings are held on the 4th Wednesday of the month at 2.00pm, the next one being on Wednesday 25th February.  This is largely a time of silent prayer and reflection, beginning with a reading from Julian of Norwich’s Revelations of Divine Love and ending with tea and biscuits.  It is led by Rev’d Alice and everyone is welcome.  Further details from Rev’d Alice on 07790 903316.

Donations

We are now able to accept debit/credit card donations. If you are a taxpayer and can Gift Aid your donation, please complete a yellow envelope, in church, with your details and hand this to the person operating the card reader or contact the Parish Office for more information. Thank you!

PREVIOUS PEW SHEETS

CONTACT US

Parish Office in Main Hall
Tel: (01843) 866061

Hopeville Avenue,
St Peter-in-Thanet,
CT10 2TR

Open Monday to Friday
9.30am – 12.30pm.

(Please note the revised opening hours.)

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Hall Hirers Terms and Conditions

ST. PETER IN THANET COMMUNITY HALLS HIRE TERMS AND CONDITIONS

(Reviewed May 2023)

All hall bookings are carried out via our website, www.stpeterinthanet.org.uk either by the Hirer direct or with the help of the Parish Administrator. Hirers can only use the halls during the hours agreed, and equipment, furnishings, kitchen hire must also be arranged in advance. See Kitchen Rules Appendix for full details. There is a small charge for the use of the Main Hall kitchen(see website) and this will be added for one-off bookings. Hirers must sign our on-line declaration to confirm that they have read and will abide by our Ts and Cs and GDPR protocols and the special rules relating to the kitchen, and ensuring they notify their members/volunteers/guests of these Terms and Conditions, including the fees and charges for any loss/damage/Rubbish left/ breakages/ however caused, cancellation charges, lost keys, deposits etc in our terms, and conditions.

Our bookings are subject to approval by the halls committee.

Hirers are responsible for setting up and clearing their furniture within the hired times agreed and ensure that any furniture/equipment used is replaced in the correct places and is clean.

  • Security bars must be removed from Fire Exit before the meeting/event starts.
  • In the Main Hall, hirers can find extra chairs behind the screens at the back of the stage. We ask that furniture is not dragged across the floor. 
  • We advise that tables are lifted into position using two people. 
  • The use of chalk/powder on the floor is strictly forbidden. 
  • Hirers should mop up any form of liquid immediately and display the wet floor sign. * The Halls have brooms/mops/dustpans/brushes available for use.
  • If necessary, Hirers should sweep the floor and clean the tables.
  • Please do not move furniture from the entrance foyer.

When leaving the building, the Hirer has a responsibility to ensure:

  • All lighting, ventilation, and kitchen equipment is switched off and left safe; turn off water taps in the kitchen/toilets. Turn down radiator settings to original setting if they have been adjusted.
  • Security bars to be replaced across the emergency exits.
  • All external doors are locked, including windows and fire-doors, and check that no one is left in the building including toilet areas. N.B. In the main hall, if the office is open during weekday mornings, locking up instructions should be queried with the Parish Administrator

Care

The Hirer shall undertake to take reasonable care when hiring our halls, especially regarding fixtures and fittings, the floors, tables and chairs, etc. No fixings shall be driven into any part of the buildings, if decorations are used, please do not use tape. We reserve the right to recover the cost of any loss, damages, breakages and repairs, or non-compliance of our terms and conditions from the Hirer and invoice the Hirer and expect payment within seven days. 

All rubbish is to be removed from the premises.

Please keep main doors closed, and locked where possible.

Disco Equipment/Music

  • The use of disco equipment for private functions is strictly restricted to between 9am and 10.30pm and is only allowed in the Main Hall
  • We ask that the use of such equipment be kept to as low a volume as possible to avoid a noise nuisance to our neighbouring residences.
  • At 10.30 pm all music should cease or if an extension has been granted kept at a minimum level as it should be a quiet/clearing up time.
  • At the end of hire, all individuals should be asked to leave the building quietly to save disturbing the residents. 

Bouncy Castles

  • If a Bouncy Castle is being booked for a children’s party, a small surcharge will be applied(see website). It can only be used in the Main Hall and must only be assembled at the Non-Stage end of the hall because of the ceiling-mounted projector at the stage-end. It must also be erected, dismantled and removed within the hired period by the supplier. The hirer is responsible for any damage caused by its use.

Prohibited Items

  • No Candles, Naked Lights, Sparklers, Fireworks, Oil Burners, Gas or Liquid Petroleum Flames smoke
  • No bubble machines/ foam machines, or glitter are allowed.
  • Deep Fat Frying is not allowed.
  • No attachments to light fittings shall be permitted, and no excessive load shall be placed on the Hall electrical supply system with regard to amplification, etc. Electrical appliances owned and used in our halls by hirers must have a valid PAT test label attached. 

Health and Safety

It is the responsibility of the Hirer to ensure the health and safety of all persons attending the function of which he/she is the organiser. 

  • The Hirer should familiarise themselves with the location and operation of the emergency exits and Assembly Point (Co-op Car Park). 
  • Please ensure all fire exits and emergency evacuation routes are always kept clear.
  • A first aid kit is kept in the kitchen with the accident book. 
  • If an accident occurs, report to Parish Administrator using accident report book. Located in the visitors sign-in folder and in First aid box.
  • A Defibrillator is situated by the internal door into the Main Hall. In the Foyer of The Portland Centre there is an access key to the Main Hall
  • If someone is taken ill while in the halls, they should immediately be removed from the room, and arrangements must be made to get them home, to a doctor or hospital as soon as possible. Dial 111 or 999 if an emergency.
  • Hirers are encouraged to keep a list of attendees together with a contact number and retain this for 3 weeks

Insurance

The Hirer shall NOT be covered by Owner’s insurance for any claim whatsoever arising from the activities of The   Hirer. The Hirer shall indemnify the Owner against any claim which may arise out of the hiring or which may be made by any person affected by the activities of The Hirer or person(s) visiting or using the premises during the occupation by The Hirer. The Hirer shall be responsible for taking out insurance to cover any public liability arising from their activities. The Owner shall not be liable for any loss or damage arising out of the hiring, nor for any loss, damage or injury which may be incurred or suffered by, or be done, or happen to, any person(s) visiting or using the premises, during the occupation by The Hirer, arising from any cause whatsoever, so far as any exclusion is permissible by law. The Owner shall not be responsible for any loss due to a breakdown of equipment, failure of the electricity supply, leakage of water, fire or any other circumstance which may cause the premises to be closed or the hire arrangements interrupted or cancelled. 

Indemnity to Hirer

We will indemnify You and, at Your request, any person who hires, rents or borrows The Premises for occasional social events. The maximum We will pay inclusive of Costs and Expenses is £2,000,000.

We will not provide indemnity

(1) In respect of

(a) any commercial or business hire

(b) any individual, club, organisation, society or group who hire The Premises on a regular weekly or monthly basis

(2) where indemnity is provided by another insurance policy.

Bookings: It is not our policy to hire out our buildings for individual party-political meetings or religious uses other than those acceptable to the Christian Faith. 

Performing Rights Society licences: Our premises licences are displayed in the halls’ entrances.

Sale Of Alcohol – No alcoholic drink may be sold at any time unless the Hirer has obtained a Temporary Events Notice from Thanet District Council and has produced the licence to the Halls’ Administrator or authorised representative. No licence will be authorised for Sunday use. 

Smoking/ Vaping Policy – Smoking or vaping is prohibited anywhere within our buildings.

Sub-Letting/Hall Hire – Hirers must not sub-let any room/hall, nor use any room/hall other than that set-out and paid for under their Booking Request/Invoice. 

Church function – Very occasionally a church function may have to take preference over a hirer’s regular booking.  The Administrator will give the Hirer as much notice as possible, and any hire charges will be reimbursed.

Under stage/Storage –No one is permitted under the stage unless requiring access to their storage lockers. Due to health and safety regulations, children are strictly prohibited from under the stage area (this includes the uniformed groups). 

  • We offer storage cupboards for hire by the year, but these are limited and always in high demand. 
  • If you do not have a cupboard, all equipment/items must be removed before leaving the premises. Any property left without permission will be disposed of. 
  • Ensure when visiting Cupboard/Storage area, that you sign in and out.

Lost property can be found in the cloakroom near the parish office. Unclaimed items will be disposed of after eight weeks.

Vulnerable Adults – Care of Children 

Particular attention must be given to the protection of vulnerable adults and children in line with the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006.

Regular Hirer

It is the responsibility of the hirer to produce a Risk Assessment for their event and to take responsibility for the safety of those attending their group.

  • It is of paramount importance that all Regular recurring Hirers are aware that it is their responsibility

to submit their own online booking requests for any future dates and that these are entered on an ongoing basis. It is suggested that as one month is paid for, the corresponding dates for the following year should be added. This will avoid hirer’s regular slots being booked online by others.

One-off Hirers

  • A non-returnable deposit of £25 must be paid at the time of booking.
  • An extra £50 returnable key deposit is required for any evening booking which extends beyond 6pm and we reserve the right to retain some or all of this if there is any mess or damage incurred.
  • Hire prices will be reviewed annually and introduced from January 1st.
  • All Hire payments must be paid in full at least 14 days before the event, by BACS. Cash or Card can be used for payment in the Parish Office.
  • The Terms and Conditions are reviewed annually by the Halls’ Management Committee and can be changed without notice. Please view them online if you are in doubt at www.stpeterinthanet.org.uk/halls/Tsand&Cs

DATED: May 31st 2023

Privacy Policy

GENERAL PRIVACY NOTICE

The Parochial Church of St Peter-in-Thanet

Website Cookie Policy

We use cookies to give you a better online experience. In order to make full use of the St Peter’s Parish website (‘Website’), your computer, tablet or mobile phone will need to accept cookies. We feel that it is important that you know what cookies our Website uses and for what purposes. This will help to protect your privacy, while at the same time providing you with the best online experience.

By clicking ‘Yes’ on the cookie banner, you give your consent to the Parochial Church of St Peter-in-Thanet to place and/or read cookies from the Website you are visiting. Some of these are session cookies which are temporary and allow us to link your actions during a browser session. Session cookies are erased when you close the browser. Other cookies are persistent cookies which remain on your device for the period of time specified in the cookie. The Website uses cookies for the following purposes:

  • FUNCTIONAL COOKIES Functional cookies are essential and help you navigate the Website. They enhance the user friendliness of the Website for visitors. These cookies make sure that your acceptance of this policy only needs to made once, and that your hall booking data is available in your Client Dashboard if you are a signed in user. These cookies also help to support website security and basic functionality.
  • ANALYTICS COOKIES Analytics cookies help us to understand the behaviour of our visitors and the usage of the Website in an aggregated manner. For instance, we can use these cookies to gain insight into how our visitors use our Website. This means we can find out what works and what doesn’t, it allows us to continuously improve the Website, and measure how effective our advertising and communication is.

We do not store any of your personal data in cookies and, unless you submit a contact request through this website, no personal data is harvested or stored from your computer/device other than the IP address from where you are accessing the site.

Your personal data – what is it?

“Personal data” is any information about a living individual which allows them to be identified from that data (for example a name, photographs, videos, email address, or address).  Identification can be by the information alone or in conjunction with any other information.  The processing of personal data is governed by [the Data Protection Bill/Act 2017 the General Data Protection Regulation 2016/679 (the “GDPR” and other legislation relating to personal data and rights such as the Human Rights Act 1998].

Who are we?

This Privacy Notice is provided to you by the Parochial Church Council (PCC) of St Peter-in-Thanet which is the data controller for your data.
The Church of England is made up of a number of different organisations and office-holders who work together to deliver the Church’s mission in each community.  The PCC works together with:

  • the incumbent of the parish (that is, our vicar or rector);
  • the bishops of the Diocese of Canterbury; and
  • the Diocesan Offices (including the offices of the Archdeacons), which are responsible for the financial and administrative arrangements for the Diocese of Canterbury.

As the Church is made up of all of these persons and organisations working together, we may need to share personal data we hold with them so that they can carry out their responsibilities to the Church and our community. The organisations referred to above are joint data controllers. This means we are all responsible to you for how we process your data.


Each of data controller has their own tasks within the Church and a description of what data is processed and for what purpose is set out in this Privacy Notice. This Privacy Notice is given to you by the PCC on our own behalf and on behalf of each of these data controllers. In the rest of this Privacy Notice, we use the word “we” to refer to each data controller, as appropriate.

What data do the data controllers listed above process?

They will process some or all of the following types of data, where necessary to perform their tasks:

  • Names, titles, and aliases, photographs;
  • Contact details such as telephone numbers, addresses, and email addresses;
  • Where they are relevant to our mission, or where you provide them to us, we may process demographic information such as gender, age, date of birth, marital status, nationality, education/work histories, academic/professional qualifications, hobbies, family composition, and dependants;
  • Where you make donations or pay for activities such as use of a church hall, financial identifiers such as bank account numbers, payment card numbers, payment/transaction identifiers, policy numbers, and claim numbers;
  • The data we process is likely to constitute sensitive personal data because, as a church, the fact that we process your data at all may be suggestive of your religious beliefs.  Where you provide this information, we may also process other categories of sensitive personal data: racial or ethnic origin, sex life, mental and physical health, details of injuries, medication/treatment received, political beliefs, labour union affiliation, genetic data, biometric data, data concerning sexual orientation and criminal records, fines and other similar judicial records.

How do we process your personal data?

The data controllers will comply with their legal obligations to: keep personal data up to date; to store and destroy it securely; to not collect or retain excessive amounts of data; to keep personal data secure, and to protect personal data from loss, misuse, unauthorised access and disclosure and to ensure that appropriate technical measures are in place to protect personal data.


We use your personal data for some or all of the following purposes:

  • To enable us to meet all legal and statutory obligations (which include maintaining and publishing our electoral roll in accordance with the Church Representation Rules);
  • To carry out comprehensive safeguarding procedures (including due diligence and complaints handling) in accordance with best safeguarding practice from time to time with the aim of ensuring that all children and adults-at-risk are provided with safe environments;
  • To minister to you and provide you with pastoral and spiritual care (such as visiting you when you are ill or bereaved) and to organise and perform ecclesiastical services for you, such as baptisms, confirmations, weddings and funerals;
  • To deliver the Church’s mission to our community, and to carry out any other voluntary or charitable activities for the benefit of the public as provided for in the constitution and statutory framework of each data controller;
  • To administer the parish, deanery, archdeaconry and diocesan membership records;
  • To fundraise and promote the interests of the Church and charity;
  • To maintain our own accounts and records;
  • To process a donation that you have made (including Gift Aid information);
  • To seek your views or comments;
  • To notify you of changes to our services, events and role holders;
  • To send you communications which you have requested and that may be of interest to you.  These may include information about campaigns, appeals, other fundraising activities;
  • To process a grant or application for a role;
  • To enable us to provide a voluntary service for the benefit of the public in a particular geographical area as specified in our constitution;
  • Our processing also includes the use of CCTV systems for the prevention and prosecution of crime.

What is the legal basis for processing your personal data?


Most of our data is processed because it is necessary for our legitimate interests, or the legitimate interests of a third party (such as another organisation in the Church of England).  An example of this would be our safeguarding work to protect children and adults at risk.  We will always take into account your interests, rights and freedoms.
Some of our processing is necessary for compliance with a legal obligation. For example, we are required by the Church Representation Rules to administer and publish the electoral roll, and under Canon Law to announce forthcoming weddings by means of the publication of banns.
We may also process data if it is necessary for the performance of a contract with you, or to take steps to enter into a contract. An example of this would be processing your data in connection with the hire of church facilities.
Religious organisations are also permitted to process information about your religious beliefs to administer membership or contact details.
Where your information is used other than in accordance with one of these legal bases, we will first obtain your consent to that use.

Sharing your personal data


Your personal data will be treated as strictly confidential. It will only be shared with third parties where it is necessary for the performance of our tasks or where you first give us your prior consent. It is likely that we will need to share your data with some or all of the following (but only where necessary):

  • The appropriate bodies of the Church of England including the other data controllers;
  • Our agents, servants and contractors. For example, we may ask a commercial provider to send out newsletters on our behalf, or to maintain our database software;
  • Other clergy or lay persons nominated or licensed by the bishops of the Diocese of Canterbury to support the mission of the Church in our parish. For example, our clergy are supported by our area dean, lay chair and archdeacon, who may provide confidential mentoring and pastoral support. Assistant or temporary ministers, including curates, deacons, licensed lay ministers, commissioned lay ministers or persons with Bishop’s Permissions may participate in our mission in support of our regular clergy;
  • Other persons or organisations operating within the Diocese of Canterbury including but not limited to, where relevant, the Canterbury Diocesan Enterprises Ltd and Aquila (the Diocese of Canterbury Academies Trust).
  • On occasion, other churches with which we are carrying out joint events or activities.

How long do we keep your personal data?


We will keep some records permanently if we are legally required to do so. We may keep some other records for an extended period of time. For example, it is current best practice to keep financial records for a minimum period of 7 years to support HMRC audits. In general, we will endeavour to keep data only for as long as we need it. This means that we may delete it when it is no longer needed.

Your rights and your personal data 


When exercising any of the rights listed below, in order to process your request, we may need to verify your identity for your security. In such cases we will need you to respond with proof of your identity before you can exercise these rights.


You have the following rights with respect to your personal data:

  1. The right to access information we hold on you
    • At any point you can contact us to request the information we hold on you as well as why we have that information, who has access to the information and where we obtained the information from.  Once we have received your request we will respond within one month.
    • There are no fees or charges for the first request but additional requests for the same data may be subject to an administrative fee.
  2. The right to correct and update the information we hold on you
    • If the data we hold on you is out of date, incomplete or incorrect, you can inform us and your data will be updated.
  3. The right to have your information erased
    • If you feel that we should no longer be using your data or that we are illegally using your data, you can request that we erase the data we hold.
    • When we receive your request we will confirm whether the data has been deleted or the reason why it cannot be deleted (for example because we need it for our legitimate interests or regulatory purpose(s)).
  4. The right to object to processing of your data
    • You have the right to request that we stop processing your data. Upon receiving the request we will contact you and let you know if we are able to comply or if we have legitimate grounds to continue to process your data.  Even after you exercise your right to object, we may continue to hold your data to comply with your other rights or to bring or defend legal claims.
  5. The right to data portability
    • You have the right to request that we transfer some of your data to another controller. We will comply with your request, where it is feasible to do so, within one month of receiving your request.
  6. The right to withdraw your consent to the processing at any time for any processing of data for which consent was sought.
    • You can withdraw your consent easily by telephone, email, or by post (see Contact Details below).
  7. The right to object to the processing of personal data where applicable.
  8. The right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office.

Transfer of Data Abroad

personal data transferred to countries or territories outside the EU will only be placed on systems complying with measures giving equivalent protection of personal rights either through international agreements or contracts approved by the European Union. Our website is also accessible from overseas so on occasion some personal data (for example in a newsletter) may be accessed from overseas.

Further processing

If we wish to use your personal data for a new purpose, not covered by this Notice, then we will provide you with a new notice explaining this new use prior to commencing the processing and setting out the relevant purposes and processing conditions. Where and whenever necessary, we will seek your prior consent to the new processing.

Contact Details

Please contact us if you have any questions about this Privacy Notice or the information we hold about you or to exercise all relevant rights, queries or complaints at:

The Data Controller, St Peter-in-Thanet, The Parish Office, Hopeville Avenue, St Peter’s, Broadstairs CT10 2TR

Tel: 01843 866061

Email: DataProtection@stpeterinthanet.org.uk

You can contact the Information Commissioners Office on 0303 123 1113, or via email (https://ico.org.uk/global/contact-s/email) or at the Information Commissioner’s Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF.

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