What is a Chorister? Expand Choristers are usually children with treble (unchanged) voices who sing the top (soprano) line in the cathedral choir. They rehearse regularly and sing for services. At weekends they sing with professional adult singers – the adult altos, tenors and basses of the choir, known as the 'lay clerks'. Alongside regular services, choristers take part in concerts, they have the chance to take part in concert tours to other countries and make recordings and sing on radio and television broadcasts. Most of our choristers start at the beginning of year 4 and they all leave at the end of year 9. Unlike other cathedrals, St Albans has no 'choir school': all the choristers attend local schools, and form part of the Cathedral Choir around school hours. We are able to open up this amazing opportunity to local children without asking them to change schools.
Auditions Expand Entry to the choir is by a simple audition. The best piece to sing to us is Happy birthday! There will also be some voice exercises as well as rhythm and note-pitch games. We are not looking for trained musicians but for children who love to sing, have a spark, and are quick learners.
Time Commitment Expand Life as a chorister is action-packed and incredibly rewarding but it does require a considerable commitment. The choristers sing at regular intervals through the school week before or after the school day, and around every other weekend. They will be busy during the run-up to Christmas and Easter, including services to a packed Cathedral on Christmas and Easter Days. Choristers spend their first year or so on a reduced timetable. What you ‘put in’ as a chorister family, you ‘get out’ – making a commitment like this is an investment in your child’s future and can be transformative for your child’s life. The summer holiday is uninterrupted, and the choristers have a clear week off at half terms, and around two weeks around Christmas and Easter.
Weekend Welcome Team Assistants Expand This role plays an integral part in the overall Welcome offered at St Albans Cathedral. You will have a large impact on the visitor experience and enjoy high level of interaction with our visitors through answering questions, handing out information, helping in the shop and assisting in the interactive exhibition areas. We are particularly looking for weekend volunteers but any day throughout the week will also be accepted. If you are interested in finding out more about this role please contact [email protected] Role description
Learning Department Volunteers Expand Our Learning Department is looking for volunteers. Whether you want to help lead a variety of school trails during term time or help with our arts and crafts at mornings during the school holidays, we’d love to hear from you. Full training - and plenty of tea and coffee – will be provided. Please contact [email protected]
Concert Steward Team Expand Event stewards are on duty to welcome and look after the audience at concerts, recitals, talks and other events which take place in the Cathedral that are not services. Please contact [email protected]
Library Opening Hours Expand Monday - Friday | 10am - 2pm (excluding bank holidays) First Saturday of the month | 10am - 1pm Our library is run by volunteers. Please call ahead (01727 890222) or email to make sure there is someone available to see you if you need to: take out new membership pick up a book with a location marked 'Lawrance Room' speak to a member of our Library Team
Library benefits Expand Member benefits The Cathedral Library is a modern theological lending library. All are welcome to come and work here, but please note that only registered members of the library can take books out. Members have access to: A wide collection including books on theology, biblical studies, spirituality, philosophy, and ethics Comprehensive resources on the history of the Abbey Language resources for reading Hebrew, New Testament Greek, Latin and Old English A quiet space to read, write or research A Click & Collect service which allows members to reserve books online for collection.
Search our catalogue Expand Search our catalogue Please click here to access our online catalogue, which includes searchable digitised images from our Archives. Search our Catalogue
Library Guide Expand We have prepared an in-depth Library Guide which takes you through how to search for, reserve and renew books, as well as information for those needing to undertake research online. Library Guide
Become a Library Member Expand We charge an annual membership fee to help us keep the library running. You do not need to be a member to use the library, only to borrow books. Fees are as follows: General Readers: £20 per year Cathedral Volunteers and Students from other institutions: £10 per year Cathedral Guides, Library/Archive Team, SACT Students: Free St Albans Diocese clergy, ordinands, readers and readers-in-training: Free You can send us a cheque (payable to St Albans Cathedral Learning), or sign up using a standing order form. Please email us to let us know when this has been set up. Please select a donation amount (required) £20 General Reader £10 Concessional Reader Other Set up a regular payment Donate
British Sign Language Service Expand An informal service in British Sign Language lasting about 30 minutes held four times a year for all members of the deaf community. All are welcome to attend. Services take place when there is a fifth Saturday in a month, at 2.30pm in the Lady Chapel. Find out more here. Any questions, contact our main office at [email protected]
Safeguarding Team Expand These are the people at the Cathedral who are specially trained and available to talk to anyone who has a safeguarding concern about a child, young person, or have any questions about safeguarding at St Albans Cathedral. Elaine Rabbitt Cathedral Safeguarding Officer [email protected] 07759131584 The Rev'd Canon Will Gibbs Canon for Mission and Pastoral Care and Chapter Lead on Safeguarding [email protected] 01727 890201 The Very Rev'd Jo Kelly-Moore Dean of St Albans [email protected] 01727 890202 Jez Hirst Diocese Safeguarding Officer [email protected] 0786735088 If you are in immediate danger in crisis, or do not feel that you can keep yourself safe or are having thoughts of harming yourself or others, please contact emergency services via 999 or go to A & E. Other helpline numbers
Cathedral Safeguarding Policy and Procedures Expand St Albans Cathedral has adopted Safeguarding Policy and Procedures based on national requirements and guidance. These provide a framework for identifying and supporting vulnerable groups, information on what constitutes abuse and the processes to be followed. There is an emphasis on how to recruit safely and the necessity to support and train staff and volunteers. Chapter accepts and adopts in full the contents of The Church of England’s Safeguarding Policy for Children, Young People, and Adults, Promoting a Safer Church (2017) - Refer to National Policies and Procedures below. Download our Safeguarding Policies and Procedures below: Safeguarding Policies and Procedures Safeguarding Aide Memoire Cathedral Measures Cathedral Statement on Domestic Abuse statement The Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE) has been commissioned by the Church of England to carry out independent audits of the safeguarding arrangements in each English cathedral between 2018 and 2022. Our audit was conducted in April 2021. SCIE’s audit approach does not result in a series of recommendations, instead it gives each cathedral questions to consider in relation to the audit’s findings. The Cathedral developed an action plan following the audit to deliver further improvements in our safeguarding of young people and adults. These actions are either now complete or embedded into ongoing activity. The INEQE Safeguarding Group has been appointed to carry out the next round of independent external audits across Church of England dioceses and cathedrals, starting in 2024 and ending in 2027. St Albans Cathedral's audit is scheduled for August 2027. SCIE Safeguarding Report SCIE Report Action Plan March 2024 St Albans Diocese Safeguarding Guidelines National Policies and Procedures
Anthea Cecil Cathedral Warden Expand Anthea has worshipped at the Cathedral for 27 years and has held a number of voluntary roles involving many aspects of Cathedral life including finances, services, music, children’s church, social activities and flower arranging. She is one of the 3 Cathedral Wardens and also represents the Mission and Ministry team on Chapter. She works as a doctor in the NHS, currently as a GP and in a breast cancer clinic. She enjoys singing in choirs which takes her to visit many other Cathedrals around the country. She lives in St Albans with her husband, son and dog.
Responding to Safeguarding Concerns about a child or adult Expand A safeguarding issue is when a child or adult is being harmed or at risk of being harmed by others or themselves. Safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility; therefore this procedure applies to all clergy, staff, volunteers, contractors and members of the congregations and Cathedral community. In an emergency or if the vulnerable person is at immediate risk of serious harm, the person who has the safeguarding concern must phone the Police, using 999 or phone the relevant care services. (See list of other helpline numbers). Any safeguarding concern (including concerns about domestic abuse and any allegations against a colleague or clergy) must be reported to the Cathedral Safeguarding Officer, Elaine Rabbitt or any member of the Cathedral Safeguarding Team) within 24 hours. If the Cathedral Safeguarding Officer receives a safeguarding concern of any kind this must reported to the Rev’d Will Gibbs or, in his absence the Dean Jo Kelly-Moore. If both are absent, the Diocesan Safeguarding Officer, Jez Hirst, should be contacted. This must happen within 24 hours of the report being made. A written record of what happened, the person you spoke to, what was said and what you did should be made as soon as possible and emailed to the Cathedral Safeguarding Officer Elaine Rabbitt via [email protected] (assuming the person was implicated in your report). See Aide Memoir. The Cathedral Safeguarding Officer or, in her absence, the Chapter Safeguarding Lead Rev’d Will Gibbs is responsible for ensuring that any written records and any other related conversations and emails are recorded and stored on My Concern. The Cathedral Safeguarding Officer will ensure that any concern is discussed with the Rev’d Will Gibbs, the Dean Jo Kelly-Moore, professionals or Core group. They may decide to refer the matter to the LADO or other statutory authorities. In the event of the police or the statutory authorities being involved in the case, Chapter and staff will follow the guidance of the Safeguarding Officer, Elaine Rabbitt. Under section 5 of the Safeguarding and Clergy Discipline Measure 2016, all authorised clergy, bishops, archdeacons, licensed readers and lay workers, churchwardens and PCCs must have ‘due regard’ to safeguarding guidance issued by the House of Bishops (this will include both policy and practice guidance). A duty to have ‘due regard’ to guidance means that the person under the duty is not free to disregard it but is required to follow it unless there are cogent reasons for not doing so. (‘Cogent’ for this purpose means clear, logical and convincing.) Failure by clergy to comply with the duty imposed by the 2016 Measure may result in disciplinary action. Taken from Promoting a Safer Church (2017), Church of England.
What is Adult Learning? Expand Open to all, our Adult Learning programme covers a diverse range of topics, from faith and science to literature, art and history. On a termly basis, we deliver a range of events, including lectures, workshops, language groups and courses. For further details about our upcoming events, you can visit our ‘What’s On’ page or our Adult Learning homepage.
Join our mailing list Expand Subscribe to our mailing list to hear about the latest events in our termly programme. Join our mailing list
Where to find our events Expand Most of our events take place in hybrid format - meaning that you can book to attend either online or in-person. Make sure that you check when you book! If you are attending in-person, entry for all events is through the Welcome Centre. You can find a map to all locations in the Cathedral where our events take place here: Learning Events Map Please note that on-site parking is available only for those with access needs, and must be booked in advance through our Office by emailing [email protected].
Clergy and Reading Trainer Grants Expand We are very pleased to be able to offer clergy and Readers in the diocese of St Albans complimentary access to our Adult Learning courses, talks, study days, and reading groups. To sign up for one of our events, please email us and let us know where you're ministering/training, and what type of ticket you would like for each event. Email us
Bookings and Bursaries Expand Book our Events To book for an event, simply click on the booking link on the event page. Alternatively, you can call our Learning Administrator on 01727 890212 between 9.30am and 3.30pm Monday to Friday in term time. Tickets typically are on sale until midday on the day of the event, after which time details for any online attendees will be sent out (so please ensure that you provide a current email address when you book). For weekend events, booking will usually close at midday the Friday before. Bursaries We don't want anyone to be deterred from attending for financial reasons, so we offer a bursary scheme to help those who may need it. All we ask for is a few details from you. Please get in touch with us for an application form.
Learning Online Expand Join our events from the comfort of your own home Most of our events are now hybrid, which means that you can join us live in-person or online. We also usually take recordings of our events, so that if you cannot join live then you can catch-up afterwards. For the catch-up option, just purchase an online ticket and you'll receive a link the day afterwards to the recording, which is available for 2 weeks. Some talks are only in-person or online, so please check when you book! Recordings are available where speakers permit us to take one, and this will be made clear on the event pages. We do our best to provide high-quality audio and visuals for those joining online, but occasionally our technology may misbehave. In this case, please get in touch and we will do our best to sort out a transcript, recording or refund.
Local Partners Expand We are fortunate that the local area is steeped in learning, and are pleased to be able to work in partnership with a few local groups, such as the Friends of St Albans Cathedral and St Albans Architectural and Archaeological Society, who also run a programme of events.