It is now a year since the Friends were allowed us to insert a page or two into City Events to spread our message and provide more information about the City churches. We hope that you continue to find it interesting if you have seen us before.

City Events copies are delivered by a team of volunteers from the Friends of the City Churches along with publicity material about some City church events. It is just one way that the Friends of the City Churches puts into action its remit of encouraging the use of City churches and providing publicity about them. In this way we hope to bring together the many people who love and value these churches, helping ensure that they remain accessible to the whole community now and for future generations.

We have over 700 members and some of these are particularly active and "church watch" in pairs to allow churches that would otherwise be closed to visitors and worshippers to remain open and secure. We presently watch in St Mary Aldermary, St Martin Ludgate, St Dunstan in the West, St Sepulchre, All Hallows London Wall, St James Garlickhythe and most recently, St Ethelburga. Events are arranged for members both within City churches and looking at churches elsewhere on the annual "Chairman’s Outing".

Our office is at St Magnus the Martyr. We are manned there on a trial basis each Thursday from 11am until 2pm. Please do ring in or call in to see us at that time. Messages can be left at other times by phone or e-mail.

Since our last News in December, we have contributed towards the Organ refurbishment at St Giles Cripplegate and for architect’s plans for fire precautions at St Margaret Pattens. We are also exploring with those at St Martin Ludgate about ways we can help with their appeal for funds. All this as well as running a Project for the Year contributing to the refurbishment of the internal North wall monuments at St Mary Aldermary. Funds come from our members and included last year profit from our Christmas card, which was a sell-out. If you are not a Friend, why not phone up the office for a membership information pack, or pick up one of our cards in a City church?

A correction from December; it is the Historic Churches Preservation Trust, previously in Fulham Palace, that has now moved into offices behind St Bartholomew the Great (31 Newbury Street EC1A 7HU). tel 020 7600 6090 www.historicchurches.org.uk.

Meanwhile there is the Churches Conservation Trust at 1, West Smithfield, EC1A 9EE which was the Redundant Churches Fund, and looks after 330 churches no longer needed by the Church of England for parish use. Tel 020 7213 0660 www.visitchurches.org.uk.

Friends of the City Churches, St Magnus the Martyr, Lower Thames Street, London EC3R 6DN tel 020 7626 1555

e-mail      www.london-city-churches.org.uk