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"The Verger in the Church of England " by John Campbell, Head Verger at Lincoln Cathedral, is back in print. Get your Copy Today.

Here is a thoroughly practical guide to every aspect of the work of a verger in the Church of England. From the ancient origins of the office to arrangements for a civic procession; from removing candle wax from altar linen to providing a welcome for visitors of every description, it is packed with invaluable information and advice.

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Press

Crista Cloutier wrote an article at annual conference 2009 about vergers view it here

Faith in the darkness- "I had just witnessed the first dog being admitted to the Church of England Guild of Vergers."

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Please circulate this as widely as you can.  
I am sure you are all aware that the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme which enables listed places of worship to claim back 100% of VAT incurred on repairs and maintenance to the building, professional fees and repair works to fixtures such as bells and organs.  This Scheme has provided great relief to places of worship faced with raising enormous sums for maintenance and repair, and has enabled those who look after these valuable heritage and community buildings to maintain them for future generations. Over £102 million has been paid out to places of worship across the United Kingdom since 2001 through the Scheme, of which about 93% has gone to Church of England churches.
This grant Scheme was introduced by Gordon Brown, when Chancellor of the Exchequer, in April 2001 as an interim measure while the European Union was holding a review of the Directive covering VAT rates.  Although a reduced VAT rate has not yet been agreed with Europe, the Scheme is due to come to an end in March 2011, along with the Memorial Grant Scheme.
Along with others, we are starting the campaign to get the scheme extended, some of which you will have already have heard about. But here is a quick summary of what has happened so far. Please spread as far as wide as possible.
1. There was a debate at the February Synod on Thursday 11th February which called upon the Government to give an early commitment to continuing beyond March 2011 the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme - I attach a brief summary. A letter is now being sent to Government.

2. There is now a sample letter on www.churchcare.co.uk which we want to encourage many people as possible to send to their MP. The direct link is: http://www.churchcare.co.uk/news.php

3. There is also a Downing Street Petition. Again, please encourage everyone to sign  - http://petitions.number10.gov.uk/VAT-refundscheme/

. The deadline is 29th August 2010. If you remember the Water Charging petition did extremely well and ended up in the top 3 in terms of numbers of signatures during its last months.
4. Manchester Diocese are preparing to set up a campaign website along the lines of the very successful http://www.dontdrainus.org/ . So keep an eye out on the Manchester Diocese website.
5. And the recent launch of the Places of Worship @ the Heritage Alliance Manifesto gave as their number one priority the need to continue the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme. This group brings together all those organisations who have responsibility for historic places of worship. To read the manifesto go to http://www.heritagelink.org.uk/library-2/