Coronavirus (COVID-19) Guidance

The information below has now been superseded by the latest ‘Services Suspended’ post. Please see the more recent posts in relation to our current status and ignore the information below.

COVID-19 is a new illness that can affect your lungs and airways. It’s caused by a virus called coronavirus.

At Community Baptist Church we want to keep all our attendees updated with the latest advice from the government and Public Health England. Moreover, we wanted to put in place some of our own guidelines that we think would be appropriate for our services over the coming months.

Symptoms of coronavirus

  • a cough
  • a high temperature
  • a shortness of breath
  • a sore throat
  • fatigue

But these symptoms do not necessarily mean you have the illness.

The symptoms are similar to other illnesses that are much more common, such as cold and flu.

Advice from Public Health England

  • Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. Use an alcohol-based hand sanitiser that contains at least 60% alcohol if soap and water are not available. This is particularly important after taking public transport. 
  • Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands.
  • If you feel unwell, stay at home, do not attend work or school.
  • Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in a bin.
  • Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces in the home and work environment.

Church Guidelines

Obviously as a church our intention is to keep operating in what looks likely to be a difficult and ever changing environment for the next few months. We think the following guidelines are appropriate for the current situation but clearly these may well change as time progresses.

  • If you’re thinking of attending church but have any of the cold and flu type symptoms mentioned above or are generally feeling unwell, then please refrain from coming to our services until you are back to full health.
  • Upon attending The Longfield Suite it’s worthwhile using the toilet facilities and giving your hands a good soapy wash in warm water before entering the main auditorium. The virus can be picked up by touching infected services like door handles, lift buttons and grab rails on public transport. Keeping our hands clean is vital in reducing its spread.
  • Although we want to be as friendly and inviting as always, we will be refraining from shaking hands or any other close contact until further notice.
  • If you need to cough or sneeze during a service. If you know it’s on the way then ideally you’d leave the auditorium and move to the landing area until you’re fit to return. However, we know that’s not always possible, so please bring tissues with you to catch any droplets and then bin them appropriately afterwards.
  • A little bit of ‘social distancing’ is probably beneficial before and after the service when we’re fellowshipping. Just keep your distances in mind so that we can talk safely without spreading any droplets.

Other alterations that we’ve already introduced include increasing the spacing between seating at our services. Think of it as a First Class upgrade as you get more leg room and a little more flexibility to spread out those elbows!

We’ve also cancelled our midweek house group at Pastors home until further notice. As mentioned before we are conscious of social distancing and this is difficult to achieve in a home environment.

Please don’t be offended by any of the changes above. We just want to keep everyone as safe and healthy as possible. It’s a challenging time but remember one of our favourite bible scriptures, “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.” Romans 8:28. We might not always understand why some things are happening, but as Christians we know that our Lord and Saviour is in control.

If you have any queries or questions then please speak to Pastor.