Dear friends,

Like you, New Cross Christian Centre has to make some adjustments to our normal procedures in response to the ever-changing situation surrounding COVID-19 virus. We are taking this threat very seriously and wanted to alert you to some potential changes that could affect events at NCCC in the coming days in light of the latest UK Government guidelines around non-essential contact.

As you are probably aware, the UK Government has now discouraged public gatherings in London and many churches have stopped or reduced public gatherings for the foreseeable future. While we at NCCC are committed to providing you with the best Pastoral support possible during this uncertain time, in response to Government guidelines we have decided take sensible precautions by shifting and reduce services temporarily for the next 12 weeks from this Sunday in the following ways:

1. Keep the church open as a place for prayer and contact subject to the rules and guidance on social distancing, with appropriate signage to remind people of the need to keep at least 2 metres apart.
2. Reduce the size of mid-week gatherings.
3. Pause normal meetings for worship on Sundays for the next 12 weeks until further notice in line with Government advice as a measure to help protect the most vulnerable.
4. Explore other means of sharing ministry including live streaming.
5. Encourage everyone to continue to maintain good hygiene and observe social distancing if attending necessary meetings.
6. No cooking or any other food handling on the site during the 12-week period.
7. In circumstances where people are self-isolating no pastoral visits should be undertaken until their isolation ends.
8. Ensure good regular cleaning of surfaces people touch regularly, including such things as door handles, light switches etc.

Additionally, for safety reasons we think it sensible for “at-risk” groups not attend even small gatherings at NCCC for the next 12 weeks unless completely necessary. For clarification “at-risk” groups include the following: the elderly 70+ years; young adults with underlying conditions such as diabetes, asthma heart problems, kidney disease, liver disease, cancer, cerebral palsy and pregnant women.

We have precautions in place to keep our staff safe, healthy and isolated from exposure. Every member of our team is set up to work from home and will remain isolated until the threat of this virus has reasonably passed.

Mainly online means and social media will now serve as our primary form of communication with you over the coming weeks. While we endeavour to keep people informed in this way, we may still find the need to send a direct message.

All those at NCCC want to reassure you that we are working on a continuity plan to ensure the long-term availability of NCCC is not impacted. Our plan takes many factors into consideration including how we can serve the local community, our congregants, as well as the other ministries we are in partnership with.

Any changes to the above will be posted on the Facebook Page and WhatsApp group, so please continue to log in for the latest news.

Lastly, please let us continue to keep in touch with each other whether over the phone or by social media to encourage each other in Christ through these trying times.

If you need to contact us please send an email to: info@newcrosschristiancentre.com.

Thank you for your cooperation and God bless you from all your friends at NCCC.