Following Christ in Alban’s Footsteps
WELCOME AND COMPASSION
As Alban welcomed the stranger Amphibalus, we too will be a place of God’s welcome in our community, where anyone can come as visitor or pilgrim, to worship and to learn about and deepen their relationship with God. We will be a place of peace, comfort, safety and refuge for people of all faiths and none.
WORSHIP AND WITNESS
Like Alban, we will put Christ at the centre of all that we do, and worship and adore the true and living God. Like Amphibalus, with confidence we will live and share the gospel of Jesus Christ.
COURAGE AND JUSTICE
Alban heard Christ’s words and bravely acted on them in the face of adversity. We will do the same, being a beacon of Christ’s message of justice for all creation. We will ally ourselves with those who are persecuted and those who face injustice throughout the world. We will be bold in our faith, standing up for justice and modelling the actions we hope others will also take.
LEADERSHIP AND SERVICE
As the Cathedral and mother church for the Diocese of St Albans, with Alban’s boldness we will strive to be leaders and a resource, sharing our work, supporting and serving others, and providing inspiration as we live God’s love.
St Albans Cathedral stands over the place where Alban, Britain’s first saint, was buried after giving his life for his faith over 1,700 years ago.
A LETTER FROM
THE DEAN
FOLLOWING CHRIST IN ALBAN’S FOOTSTEPS.
As we look back over 2024, it has been a year of significant change, activity, growth, opportunity and challenge in the life of St Albans Cathedral. We adopted our shared vision for 2024 to 2029, to follow Christ in Alban’s footsteps, with its associated priorities of welcome and compassion, worship and witness, courage and justice, leadership and service. Throughout 2024 these have continued to inspire and guide our mission and ministry, and to be embedded into the daily life and work of our Cathedral and Abbey Church.
A significant change in March 2024 was that the Cathedral became a registered charity. The Chapter acts as the trustees of the charity, with the responsibility to ensure that the Cathedral is effectively and properly run for the public benefit. As Dean I chair the Chapter, and Helen Gray, the senior non-executive member of the Chapter, is Vice Chair. With the support of trustees and the committees of the Chapter, the new governance model is working very well. My sincere thanks to all who serve in this way.
We had three notable departures from our Cathedral staff in 2024. Our Chief Operating Officer, Tim Fleming, left after 11 years on the Cathedral staff and many more years of involvement at the Cathedral. Andrew Lucas retired after an extraordinary 27 years as the Master of the Music and Tom Winpenny left the Cathedral after 16 years as the Assistant Master of the Music. Our sincere thanks to all of them for their faithful service to our Cathedral and the wider community.
Jo Kelly-Moore
Dean of St Albans
OUR YEAR IN NUMBERS
623k
CATHEDRAL VISITORS AND PILGRIMS IN 2024
700 REGULAR CONGREGANTS
1,758 SERVICES
13k INDIVIDUALS
ENGAGING IN LEARNING AT THE CATHEDRAL
WELCOME
In 2024, the Cathedral saw a recordbreaking 623,000 visitors, up from 577,000 in 2023, making it our busiest year yet. We welcomed guests from over 40 countries, each leaving with a deeper understanding of Alban’s inspiring story.
The year began with the stunning Peace Doves, a hanging installation by Peter Walker Sculptor, featuring 10,000 paper doves adorned with messages of peace from the community. This was accompanied by a diverse range of events, including a captivating Romeo and Juliet performance by OVO Theatre, sell-out yoga sessions and a Peace Vigil, uniting various faith groups.
Our live peregrine falcon camera captivated over half a million viewers in 2024, showcasing the Cathedral as a sanctuary for both people and wildlife.
Throughout the year, we hosted thousands at a variety of memorable events, from sell-out silent discos to candlelight concerts, as well as our inaugural Film Week in collaboration with St Albans Film Festival. The St Albans Fireworks Spectacular was another standout, raising £20,000 for local charities in alignment with our mission of giving back to the community.
We look forward to welcoming hundreds of thousands of people in 2025.
raised for local charities through St Albans Fireworks Spectacular
The St Albans Fireworks Spectacular
COMPASSION
As Alban reached out with compassion to Amphibalus, so our priority in all our work is to reach out in the same way. In 2024 that was demonstrated through our ministries here at the Cathedral and in our work beyond the walls.
Clergy and lay pastoral assistants reached out in care to members of our congregation and the wider community in pastoral visiting at home, in hospital and in rest homes. This included home communions. The work of our occasional offices also offered care and support at all moments of life.
The Social Justice Committee led us into wider community partnerships for compassionate action. During 2024 we were part of an ongoing city-wide project to address street homelessness, including development of plans for a day centre and social housing. This work is ongoing. Our ministry supporting those who have joined our community as refugees and asylum seekers continued to be busy in 2024, including fully subscribed Sanctuary Suppers, language classes, social gatherings, and support in residency processes and finding work and housing.
We have continued to work alongside local agencies to care for those vulnerable and in need in our city, including our support for Verso Care Foodbank. Our Mission Giving Committee also oversaw our giving of £41,000 to 36 charities, local, national and international. The areas of priority are deprivation, education, wellbeing, housing and homelessness, building community and reaching the most vulnerable. In addition, in 2024 we gave £10,000 each to both Fireworks charities, Home-Start Hertfordshire and Earthworks, and £4,200 to our Christmas charity St Albans and Hertsmere Women’s Refuge.
WORSHIP 33
regular acts of worship each week
Our regular pattern of worship, grounded in the Benedictine tradition of our Cathedral and Abbey Church, is the heartbeat of our life together and we continue to enjoy a high quality of worship across our services, with 33 regular acts of worship taking place each week.
In 2024 we hosted several special services, including two royal visits at the Commonwealth and Trafalgar Day services, where young people from across the Diocese were represented. We welcomed record numbers at Christmas and Easter services, with these major festivals being a liturgical highlight.
We welcomed new staff members in the liturgical life of the Cathedral in 2024. The vestry is developing well, led by Joe Kennedy who joined the Cathedral this year as our Head Virger.
September 2024 saw the arrival of our new Director of Music, William Fox. William joined us from St Paul’s Cathedral, London, where he was Assistant Director of Music. The remit of the Director of Music is to oversee all aspects of the Cathedral’s varied musical life. He has particular responsibility for the training and direction of the boy and girl choristers and the Lay Clerks, and the strategic direction of the Music Department.
Aside from ensuring the choirs sing at the highest standards in daily worship, the two major new priorities for the Music Department are to realise parity between boy and girl choristers and to begin musical partnerships working throughout the Diocese – to build links between schools, churches and music hubs, to ensure our musical tradition is shared with as many people as possible.
A significant step in this work was the appointment in September 2024 of Dewi Rees as Assistant Director of Music and Partnerships to start after Easter 2025. Dewi is currently Assistant Organist at Bath Abbey and between 2020 and 2022 was Organ Scholar here at St Albans. As well as being a stellar organist, Dewi brings with him experience in music outreach work from his role in Bath.
WITNESS
An important act of witness is to take the story of Alban into the heart of our city with the Alban Pilgrimage. This year, we welcomed guest preacher, the Rt Revd Dr Guli FrancisDeqhani, Bishop of Chelmsford. Bishop Guli’s own story of leaving her native Iran at the age of 13 in the wake of the 1980 Revolution resonates strongly with our story of Alban and Amphibalus, to which she brought a great authenticity and connection.
We continue to be a place where people of all ages grow in faith. This included a bumper crop of baptisms, with 35 children and 15 adults through the year. Canons Tim Bull and Will Gibbs also initiated a new course for those wishing to explore the Christian faith, based upon the story of Alban and Amphibalus. The plan is to repeat this at regular intervals.
A further new initiative was a children’s Summer Camp, run jointly by Youth Chaplain, Fr Calum Zuckert, with Anna Chambers, the Children and Families worker, alongside Steve Clarke, the Education Officer, and assisted by a team of volunteers. This was highly popular with 70 children attending throughout the week.
Last year also saw two significant anniversaries in Cathedral learning, marking 40 years of our awardwinning schools’ programme and 50 years of adult learning, both of these pioneers and still leading the way. It was encouraging to see 13,374 school children visiting in 2023-24, an increase of more than 2,000 on the previous year.
COURAGE
Our aim is to be a centre for discussion and debates, leading to common action.
With the Peace Doves installation by Peter Walker Sculptor coming just a few weeks after the terror attack and conflict in Israel-Gaza, we held a peace vigil and discussion, led by Rabbi Adam Zigouria Moffett of St Albans Masorti synagogue and Akhtar Zaman from St Albans Islamic Centre, alongside Dean Jo Kelly-Moore. It attracted a very diverse group of over 100 people, including the Lord Lieutenant of Hertfordshire, the High Sheriffs of Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire, MP Daisy Cooper, the Mayor of St Albans and members of the City and District Council, as well as school and community groups. It was an important moment to come together in honesty and a shared determination to work for peace.
At the other end of the year, in October, we hosted our second community showcase in the Nave, with over 70 charities and not-for-profit organisations coming together to raise the profile of their work and to celebrate the difference they make in transforming our community. Then in November, as part of our adult learning programme, we hosted an evening discussion between Lord Filkin and Bishop Alan on the Parliamentary Assisted Dying Bill, airing medical and ethical concerns for the proposals.
JUSTICE
The Social Justice Committee, the Environmental Strategy Group and Eco Team led us in our work for justice in 2024.
As well as those activities detailed elsewhere in this report (including the Homelessness Forum and the Community Showcase), the Social Justice Group worked with our Adult Learning and Schools teams to highlight and take action in justice issues. These included a June event focused on youth mental health and the annual 6th form debate which focused on the criminal justice system. The group also supported two exhibitions, the first with HACRO, which supports rehabilitating offenders, and ‘Unseen Echoes’, which highlighted the issues of domestic abuse.
Our environmental work continues at pace. In December we submitted our application for an A Rocha UK Gold Award. We hope that this will be completed in 2025. An audit of energy use in all our properties was conducted and we hope to have the results in the first quarter of 2025. This will further inform necessary action to fulfill our commitment to being net carbon zero. Work in the Eco Garden throughout 2024 has transformed it, improving our biodiversity and recalling it as historically part of the monks’ herb garden.
LEADERSHIP
Leadership has been a clear focus of our ministry in 2024, expressed in a wide variety of ways.
Becoming a registered charity, and to comply with the Cathedrals Measure 2021, the roles of Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer were separately recruited for the first time, with Mike Birkett appointed as Chief Financial Officer in August 2024 and Alan Hartwell appointed as Chief Operating Officer in September 2024. As noted elsewhere, the Cathedral’s governance structure, in accordance with these regulations, is in place and the Nominations Committee has ensured that the skills required on the Chapter and its committees have been recruited.
We work to offer leadership in exploring and addressing important issues in our society. In 2024, to widen diversity, the Cathedral’s guided tours now include Let the Women Speak which honours the incredible women — heard and unheard, seen and unseen — who have been part of the rich history of the Cathedral. A Visually Impaired Person’s Tour was also introduced by a group of our Cathedral guides, who have been trained to deliver this special tactile tour.
As part of our wider community leadership, in June the Cathedral hosted the 2024 St Albans constituency election hustings. Over 300 people attended in person and over 450 watched the live-stream of all seven candidates hoping to be the city’s next Member of Parliament in the 2024 General Election, chaired by Professor Quintin McKellar, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Hertfordshire.
In November we hosted the Diocesan Interfaith Forum, marking the beginning of Interfaith Week. Representatives of eight of the world’s religions gathered at the Cathedral to discuss how we can work together better, as people of faith, to ensure environmental sustainability.
SERVICE
As the Mother Church of the Diocese of St Albans, our commitment is to serve the communities of our diocese, supporting the Bishop’s ministry, that together we may live God’s love. That leadership is expressed in a variety of ways.
The Dean is a member of the Bishop’s staff team and she and Fr Will Gibbs are members of Bishop’s Council. The Dean, Fr Will Gibbs and the Precentor are all on Diocesan Synod. Fr Will Gibbs is also Chair of the Diocesan House of Clergy. Fr Kevin Walton once again lectured in the Eastern Region Ministry Course in 2024. Canons Tim Lomax and Tim Bull have senior leadership roles in the Diocese and Canon Tim Bull is on General Synod. During 2024 members of our congregation were on Deanery and Diocesan Synod, and the Diocesan Board of Finance. The Precentor prepared the liturgy for, and coordinated, 19 diocesan services hosted by the Cathedral in 2024. All the Cathedral clergy led services in parishes across the Diocese
throughout the year, and we welcomed parishes to adult learning events and on pilgrimage to the Cathedral.
Generous service was a hallmark of our Cathedral ministry every day throughout 2024, offered by more than 500 volunteers over 67 different teams and ministries. We are blessed with their generous service. We said farewell to several volunteers, who graduated to a gold lanyard, and welcomed new members to the team. Training and induction is a vital part of our support for our volunteers, including ensuring that all have completed their safeguarding training.
FINANCES
The Cathedral’s operating deficit of £290,000 in 2024 compares to a deficit of £58,000 in 2023.
The Cathedral had budgeted a deficit of £58,000, which was always going to be challenging given economic conditions and rising costs, where we see increases in excess of the headline inflation rate. Additional costs were incurred from the restructuring of the Music Department, together with the recruitment of a new Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer.
Donations were disappointing and both pledged congregational giving and visitor income were less than budgeted. There is a significant backlog of upkeep and maintenance across the Cathedral and its estate, with additional costs identified and incurred in 2024. Investment property income was lower than budgeted due to delays in letting properties and voids, together with repairs and maintenance being greater than expected. The decision to move to a new cleaning provider has not provided the quality nor savings anticipated.
Major income-generating events in 2024 included the graduation ceremonies for the
University of Hertfordshire and the Fireworks Spectacular, although our St Albans Film Festival and the Peace Doves installation by Peter Walker Sculptor made losses. We now prepare individual Event Profit and Loss Accounts to prioritise events that can maximise our return. Nevertheless, our venue hire income was up £54,000 on the budget and £41,000 on 2023.
Going forward, whilst cognisant of our mission, we will seek to maximise the opportunities that we have for commercial event hire and filming. Whilst our cost base is broadly fixed, we continue to pro-actively identify savings.
Reserves at the end of 2024 were £25.5m, £0.3m higher than 2023, helped by an increase in the value of our investments. Chapter recognises it is crucial the Cathedral’s reserves grow over a period of time as, in the absence of strong funding, reserves will inevitably hinder the Cathedral’s ability to invest for the future.
INCOME 2024
EXPENDITURE 2024
GOVERNANCE
The Chapter is the Cathedral’s governing body. Chaired by the Dean, the Chapter has primary responsibility for ensuring the Cathedral is carrying out its purposes for the public benefit and ensuring it is effectively and properly run. It is supported in its work by four key committees, including the Nominations Committee, the Finance Committee, the Audit and Risk Committee, and the Mission and Ministry Committee.
In November 2023, the Chapter and the Mission and Ministry Committee held a joint workshop to consider our key plans and activities and how to ensure we align these plans and activities with our 2024-2029 shared vision. Several agreed actions came out of this workshop which are now jointly owned and managed by both committees.
In April 2024, the Chapter and the Senior Management Team, who are accountable to the Chapter, met together. The Senior Management Team has ensured that all Cathedral staff performance objectives align to the 2024-2029 shared vision, and these are regularly reviewed. Work on the formulation of a new Cathedral Advisory Group has continued during 2024, with a detailed proposal to be submitted to the Chapter for approval later this year.
Safeguarding
St Albans Cathedral 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).
The Cathedral has adopted Safeguarding Policy and Procedures based on these 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. The National Safeguarding Management System ‘My Concern’ has been up and running since June 2024.
There are no significant new governance and safeguarding issues relating to the Cathedral to report.
THANK YOU
St Albans Cathedral could not exist without the generosity of our supporters.
A number of trusts, foundations, companies and individuals support the Cathedral’s work and mission. Every gift or grant is important to us and helps us to continue our daily mission. We would like to extend a warm thank you to the following organisations and groups:
Aylett Nurseries
KDW Financial Planning
St Albans Cathedral Alban
Foundation
St Albans City and District Council
Benefact Trust
Borras Construction
St Albans BID Sky Studios
St Albans Cathedral Education Trust
St Albans Cathedral Music Trust
The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
Church Music Trust
UK Community Renewal Fund Verulam House Fund Trust
We also would like to thank all those who have made private donations and anonymous gifts, along with those who have chosen to remember the Cathedral in their wills. Many others contribute through volunteering, freely giving their time, energy, passion, skills and experience. The generous support given by so many people, in both donations and volunteering, makes St Albans Cathedral the place it is today.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Thanks go to our contributors including:
PHOTOGRAPHERS
Toby Shepheard Photography
Arun Kataria
Paul Wilkinson
Stephanie Belton
Peter Walker Sculptor Photos
Donato Cinicolo
DESIGN
OnBrand Marketing 12 - 14 Victoria Street, St Albans, AL1 3JB 0333 322 0022 I www.onbrand.co.uk
CATHEDRAL
For further information and for all parish matters, please contact the Cathedral Office:
01727 890200
mail@stalbanscathedral.org
Sumpter Yard, St Albans, Hertfordshire, AL1 1BY
Registered Charity Number: 1207312
The Church Commissioners for England
The Diocese of St Albans
The Home Office
The Friends of St Albans Cathedral
The Williams
University of Hertfordshire Tielsi Hairdressing
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