St Andrew's, Fairfield
An Episcopal parish on the Green since 1842.
When we gather
The church is open for private prayer on weekdays from nine until four. There is step-free access from the Elm Street door, and a hearing loop throughout the nave.
Ways in
New here
What happens in the service, what to wear, where to park, and what your children will be doing. No one will ask you to stand up.
Plan your visit →Baptism & marriage
Preparation, paperwork and dates for baptism, confirmation and weddings — including what we ask of you and what we don't.
The sacraments →Music & choir
A parish choir of twenty-odd voices, an 1897 Hutchings organ, and Choral Evensong on the second Sunday of the month.
Music at St Andrew's →Baptism, confirmation, marriage, burial
The sacraments are not a service we sell and they are not reserved for members. If you want your child baptised, or you are thinking about being confirmed, or you would like to be married here, the first step is the same: talk to the rector. Nothing is decided in that first conversation.
We ask for one preparation session before a baptism and three before a marriage. We do not require you to be a parishioner, though most people find they have become one by the end.
| Sacrament | Preparation | Notice |
|---|---|---|
| Baptism | One session with the rector | 6 weeks |
| Confirmation | Six-week enquirers' course, autumn | By September |
| Marriage | Three sessions | 6 months |
| Burial | None — call at any hour | — |
Where we are in the calendar
The church keeps its own calendar, and it has done since long before this building. It begins with Advent, turns through Christmas and Lent to Easter, and spends half the year in the long green stretch of Ordinary Time.
The colours are not decoration. They are the colours of the hangings on the altar and the stole the priest wears, and this website changes with them — so it is violet here through Advent and Lent, gold at Christmas and through the fifty days of Easter, red in Holy Week and at Pentecost, and green the rest of the time.
The dates move each year because Easter moves. You never have to update this — it is worked out from the calendar.
Nine centuries of other people's work
What happens, and when
Support the parish
Pledged giving pays the heating bill, the organist and the food pantry in the undercroft. About four fifths of what we receive comes from people who give a fixed amount each month.
You can give once or set up a recurring gift. If you would rather give by cheque or bank transfer, the parish office will help.