Featuring reflections, stories and news from our members across the UK on Heritage, Faith, Pilgrimage & Welcome, Community, Experience, History & Awe!
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- Closing Date for Conference booking – 12th December
… and we will soon be heading to Dublin for our INSPIRING LIVES conference at Saint Patrick’s and Christ Church Cathedrals!
The closing date for booking to join us for our annual conference is looming – it’s the 12th December 2025.
If you haven’t yet completed your booking form or reached out to us for more information, please get in touch asap. You can email me with any queries sarah.page@cathedralsplus.org.uk
We are extremely grateful to the teams at Saint Patrick’s and Christ Church Cathedrals who have been working hard to finalise our programme and manage the logistics and equipment needed. We have confirmed guest speakers, workshop leaders and exhibits that are all sure to inspire, inform, and entertain you! The conference theme is INSPIRING LIVES, and so we are certainly planning an event that will do just that.
We are delighted that the Revd Dr Alex Wimberly, leader of the Corrymeela Community in Northern Ireland, will be our Keynote Speaker on Day 1.
On Day 2, the Revd Abigail Sines will share her experiences with us of the outreach work she initiates in the Carrigrohane Union of Parishes.
On Day 3, Kelley Bermingham, the Community Officer at Saint Patrick’s Cathedral, will explore how the historic sanctuary space in the cathedral welcomes not just theological discussions, but sociological, economic, justice and political discourse too.
Our workshop leaders offer a range of topics relevant to our theme and to the work that our delegates undertake: how to keep our cathedrals thriving (engagement & funding); programming for visitors of different or no faith; hospitality for at-risk groups and communities; heritage & conservation; music outreach; resources for schools & educators experiencing sacred space; festivals, events & celebrations; plus the healing ministry of the Church in all its guises.
Our Panel Discussion will be focused on “The Ministry of Welcome”, with additional guest panelists invited from the locally engaged communities in Dublin.
The timetable for the 3 days of the conference is packed, although there is of course some down-time scheduled for delegates to absorb and reflect of their experiences. We have arranged local tours to Dublin’s tourist and heritage sites, and we are also looking forward to the culinary delights that our caterers will present!
Our sponsors for the conference have been very generous and we are extremely grateful for their support. Thank you to Rathbornes, CCLA, Ecclesiastical Insurance (UK and Ireland) and Westhill.
We will also be launching our INSPIRING LIVES project at this 2026 conference in January, inviting our members and partners to share with us the stories of people of faith who have inspired them. The project is in its early stages of development and we will be circulating more details very soon. Click here for the project outline.
With regard to formal business, we also hold the Cathedrals Plus AGM at our annual conference, and we will be voting on adopting our updated constitution, as well as sharing information about our membership network and development opportunities for our charity.
So, look out for the latest issue of our conference programme – it will be published very soon on our website here.
Don’t forget, the closing date for bookings is 12th December 2025. If you work in a cathedral or Christian sacred space and coordinate and lead school visits, organise and host events for visitors and tourists or welcome pilgrims, please consider joining us. The benefits of networking with colleagues in similar roles in cathedrals across the UK and Ireland are significant. In addition to the free resources, our conferences are an invaluable CPD opportunity, as Laura at Westminster Abbey says,
“I have always found [the conferences] by far the best source of training available to those of us who work in this most unusual environment.“
If you’re still not sure, you will be pleased to hear that we have a special offer for cathedrals and sacred spaces in Scotland, Wales and Ireland, plus other cathedrals and sacred spaces who are not yet members of Cathedrals Plus. Email me sarah.page@cathedralsplus.org.uk to check your eligibility, or find out more.
We do hope to see you in Dublin.
NB. We are NOT able to support any applications or requests to attend that require a Visa. Our conference is offered to delegates who currently work in a Cathedral or large Christian sacred space in the UK, the Republic of Ireland or Europe, in roles of Heritage Education & Learning, Visitor Engagement or Events and who are also known to us.
Thank you!
- Keynote Speakers announced for 2026 Conference!
We are delighted to announce the Keynote Speakers for our annual residential conference in Dublin, January 2026.
JANUARY 2026 CONFERENCE THEME:
INSPIRING LIVES: People of Faith at the Heart of the Community
Rev Dr Alex Wimberly, Leader of Corrymeela Community
Alex is originally from the United States, but is no stranger to Ireland. For almost seven years Alex worked in Belfast as minister of the McCracken Memorial Presbyterian Church. He completed his PhD studies in history — focusing on the theme of reconciliation in American Presbyterianism — at the University of Notre Dame after which he returned to Northern Ireland, working in various roles with Corrymeela up until his appointment.
(this text & photo from the Corrymeela website, with thanks)We are delighted that Alex has agreed to join us in January and we very much look forward to hearing more about Corrymeela’s work and how Alex and his colleagues are inspiring lives in the communities in which they serve.
Rev Abigail Sines, Assoc Minister in Carrigrohane Union of Parishes
Abigail has been Associate Minister in the Carrigrohane Union of Parishes since September 2022. Her responsibilities focus on children and family ministry in the parish and creative outreach centred on the Church of the Resurrection Blarney. She initiated the Mindful Makers craft group, an informal group which now includes members from within and beyond the parish community, meeting twice a month during term time to chat, craft and share ideas. From March 2024, the group took on an ambitious project: creating a Knitted Bible display, which made its debut in Blarney during Holy Week this year, drawing hundreds of visitors from the local area and beyond.
Abigail’s talk entitled, ‘The Power of Quirky: Connection, Creativity and Craft’ promises to inform and also entertain us!
Eimhin Walsh, former Director of the Mendicity Institute
Dr Eimhin Walsh grew up around Saint Patrick’s Cathedral, Dublin. He studied theology and history at Trinity College Dublin and the University of Oxford. He was the first community officer at St Patrick’s, building links between the cathedral and the community groups in its vicinity. He now works as a governance professional in the public sector, specialising in building structures and systems to enable organizations to maximize their impact. He chairs the Dublin University Far Eastern Mission and is a trustee of the Royal Dublin Society.
Eimhin’s keynote posits, ‘Why Bother? the Christian vocation in a post Christian world‘, as he explores how, in an increasingly secular world, ancient Christian buildings have a unique opportunity to speak to their visitors about the Christian vision and mission. Eimhin will critique approaches of cathedrals and churches to engagement with the world and suggest some practical ways that cathedrals can facilitate meaningful engagement and genuine Christian mission in this context.
We also have a superb line up of workshop leaders to inspire you, with practical ideas, shared experience and free resources for you to adapt and use in your sacred space.
- Tom Little, Director of Music and Tomos Watkins, Assistant Director of Music CCC on
Music Outreach - Susanne Reid CEO CCC and Gavan Woods Adminstrator (CEO) SPC on Keeping our Cathedrals Alive
- Ruth Kenny, Head of Learning and Interpretation CCC on Sacred Space: Common Ground. Programming and Adjacency
- The Gathering Grounds Honesty Box Café Scheme
- Saul Penfold on Inspired Classrooms
- Kelly Bermingham, Community Officer SPC on Saint Patrick’s Cathedral – an historic sanctuary space for theological, sociological, economic, justice and political discourse.
- Aaron Hoey, Verger and Conservator SPC on Conserving the intangible heritage of churches in times of diversified use
- Kryzel Bonifacio, Education Officer SPC on Congregating curiosity: Educational engagement for the whole community
- Plus a workshop on ‘The Ministry of Welcome’ details to follow
It will be difficult to choose which sessions to attend, so why not send two or more delegates from your organisation so that you can benefit from more than one workshop when they’re running concurrently?! One of the greatest benefits of attending conference is the networking and support our delegates receive from each other. It is a wonderful opportunity for fellowship, to make new friends, and to take time out away from the busy-ness of our home sacred space and to reflect on and renew your mission and goals.
For the latest draft of our January 2026 programme, click here.
If you work in a Cathedral, Abbey, Minster or Major Church and would like to explore your mission and outreach opportunities; if you have a role in Visitor Welcome, Tourism & Engagement, Events and/or Education and Learning; you can book your delegate place by completing an online booking form here.
- Tom Little, Director of Music and Tomos Watkins, Assistant Director of Music CCC on
- Draft Programme for Dublin Conference released!
We are delighted to share a draft of our Conference Programme 2026. If you haven’t already booked your place to attend, our keynote speakers, workshop leaders and list of contributors will surely inspire you to book and join us!
Click on the link here to view the current draft programme.
Click here for more information on our conferences.
Any questions? Email our Secretary Jackie Holderness at secretary@cathedralsplus.org.uk
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