With 1,000 years of history, Holy Sepulchre in London offers a place of sanctuary

For almost 1,000 years, Holy Sepulchre London has been a place of worship and welcome at the heart of the City of London. Over the centuries, as the City of London changed around it, the work of Holy Sepulchre has also changed. Today, it sits on a busy road, a beautiful piece of history, in and amongst the high-rise office blocks. As a result of the passion and hard work of the team, Holy Sepulchre runs multiple church services each week, and actively supports music as the National Musicians’ Church, hosts the City of London Hygiene bank and multiple community activities.

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On entering the church, you leave behind the bustle and hum of the London traffic. This particular Thursday any visitor was struck first by the angelic singing and piano that floated through to the entrance, and then by the warm greeting they received from the volunteer on the door.

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For Holy Sepulchre, as the National Musicians’ church, music is at the heart of what they do. Each Thursday, visitors join 25 others for Musicali-tea. Musicali-tea is Holy Sepulchre’s weekly opportunity for people to come into the church for a warm drink, a friendly conversation and an opportunity to listen to a performance by an aspiring professional musician and a short talk on a piece of British history or heritage. The breadth of people in the room is striking, the enraptured way they listened to both performance and talk, the warmth and friendliness with which they chatted to one another and asked questions of the young performer. The Holy Sepulchre team chatted happily with many guests, most of whom they knew by name.

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In addition to supporting the new generation of artists, Holy Sepulchre believes in the transformative power of access to music and participation in music for all people. This is why they also run a community choir and, on Fridays, organise Communi-tea. Communi-tea is a chance for people of all ages and abilities to take part in arts, craft and singing.

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Access and inclusion are core values for the Holy Sepulchre team and community. In addition to ensuring that all their activities are accessible, each month they work with the London Autism Group to run a community day for anyone who is autistic and they work tirelessly to ensure that no one feels socially excluded from school or work by providing around 20,000 hygiene packs to families in the City of London each year.

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Stepping back into the busyness of central London you feel a lightness in step, from the chance to stop and listen to beautiful music and the beauty and laughter of the community and staff.

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Reflecting on Holy Sepulchre’s vision, they’re ‘seeking the presence of God in the church, for the city and the world’. From what we saw that Thursday and from hearing about the impact of the hygiene bank, it seems this vision is being realised and that this small team of staff and volunteers are having an outsized impact on the lives of those in the City and beyond.

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