Derby Cathedral is currently hosting one of a number of artworks created by local and national artists as part of Shedding Light on long Covid, a thought-provoking programme of events to engage local communities in the latest long Covid research.

The installation, outside the cathedral, invites visitors and passers-by to spend a few minutes sitting on a specially installed headset bench and listening to an audio track which they can download via a QR code.

The track, Breathturn, reflects on the moment of pause we collectively shared during the pandemic and how it affected those with Long COVID using their own words to describe their experience.

Shedding Light on Long Covid has been developed by Scientists and arts researchers at the University of Derby.

The Very Reverend Dr Peter Robinson, Dean of Derby, said: "Derby Cathedral is delighted to welcome S.H.E.D, once again.

"This is such an important opportunity being offered to people of all generations to delve deeply into our shared experiences of long Covid.

"We hope that many will come to the cathedral and enjoy the headset benches under the trees in our church yard and so form part of this precious, continued research."

 In Derbyshire alone, there are approximately 10,000 patients living with long Covid, and this figure is rising weekly.

The virtual and interactive exhibition has been created by S.H.E.D – Social Higher Education Depot, a research and innovation space that engages the public with lifelong learning and teaching through creative industry and cultural practice.

The University has been at the forefront of research into causes and effects of long Covid since 2020.

The research has mostly been learning about the challenges of the condition and how this impacts the abilities of people to undertake their everyday tasks.

The research team hopes to use this learning to create pathways to support people with long Covid.

Bishop Libby has presented around 30 Bishop's Badges to those nominated for missional long service and missional innovation awards.

The special service, A Celebration of Lay Ministry, took place in Derby Cathedral.

The annual presentations celebrate ministry and service in church and community, and recognise the distinguished service and dedication of many individuals contributing in Jesus’s name to the mission of the church.

>> See photos from the Bishop's Badge service

Bishop Libby said: "It is always a pleasure to mark and celebrate the gifts of people across the Diocese of Derby and to thank those who offer so much to develop and sustain the life of the church and its work in the wider community.

"We give thanks for the often hidden, yet crucial and remarkable work of people who do not seek recognition, but whom we honour specially today."

The message of thanks was echoed by Bishop Malcolm in his reflection.

The service is one of three being held this year to present Bishop's Badges; the first was held to celebrate generosity and courage shown by school children towards others.

The final service will be held on Sunday, 1 October.

Those presented with Bishop's Badges on Sunday, 17 September were:

Awards for Missional Innovation

John Bird, Littleover, St Peter & Blagreaves

Jim Davison, West Hallam, St Wilfrid

Gen Tarr, New Mills, Saint George the Martyr

Margaret Weightman, Cathedral Church of All Saints Derby

Awards for Missional Long Service

Michèle Aspinall, Allestree, St Edmund

Kate Bassford, Sawley, All Saints and St Mary

Janet Bradshaw, Sutton-cum-Duckmanton

Liz Broomhead, Hartington

Christine Brown, Blackwell, St Werburgh

Bryan Clarke, Cathedral Church of All Saints Derby

Margaret Clarke, Cathedral Church of All Saints Derby

Emson Maneya, Cathedral Church of All Saints Derby

Ann Cooper, Youlgreave

Averill Crisp, Swadlincote, Emmanuel

Lynne Dawson, Old Brampton, St Peter & St Paul

Christopher Dullage, Hartington

John Entwistle, Matlock Bath, Holy Trinity

Jane Entwistle, Matlock Bath, Holy Trinity

Rob Groome, Risley, All Saints

Brenda Harrop, Youlgreave

Hannah Hawkins, Brimington, St Michael and All Angels

Sylvia Homer, Stanton by Dale, St Michael and All Angels

Zoe Leleux, Stanton by Dale, St Michael and All Angels

Sue Marsh, Bakewell, All Saints

Sally Renshaw, Tibshelf, St John the Baptist

Patricia Rhodes, Tibshelf, St John the Baptist

Cyril Roberts, Old Brampton, St Peter & St Paul

Melanie Rose, Belper, St Peter

Phil Sparrow, Chesterfield, SS Augustine

John Sterland, Swanwick, St Andrew and Pentrich, St Matthew

Mary Thompson, Smalley, St John the Baptist

Mo Tolson, Risley, All Saints

Alan Tolson, Risley, All Saints

Canon Carolyn Lewis, Diocesan Director of Education, writes:

It was a great joy to be able to welcome new headteachers from across the Diocese of Derby and to be hosted by the Rt Revd Libby Lane, Bishop of Derby.

We shared together in a commissioning service where Bishop Libby shared words of encouragement and affirmation to the new school leaders and they were each given a holding cross as a small gift to remind them of their belonging to the diocesan family.

The Rt Revd Malcolm Macnaughton, Bishop of Repton and Chair of the Diocesan Board of Education (DBE), prayed for the new headteachers and also encouraged them with words from the DBE’s vision:

"In the Diocese of Derby, we are committed to support our schools to be places of transformation, growth and where community is built, as we live out the values of generous faith, courageous hope and life-giving love.

"We do this through offering:

• life-giving, life-changing learning through excellent education, shaped by a distinctively Christ-like vision and ethos 
• inclusive and inspirational collective worship, inviting all to grow in faith 
• excellent religious education, enabling children and young people to reflect critically and explore faith, belief, and Christian responses to life’s big questions 
• hospitality, hope and love to children, young people and households  
• a sense of belonging to those of all faiths and none, building community near and far, local and global.

"As the headteacher of one of our church schools, you have a special responsibility to ensure everyone in your school is valued and recognised as a child of God, uniquely gifted by God.

"You are also responsible for ensuring the school is rooted in Christian values, principles and beliefs, and that worship and religious education are at the centre of the life and work of the school."

Finishing the afternoon with ‘afternoon tea’ new headteachers, the bishops and the DBE staff team were able to make connections and share a little of the joys and challenges of life in school.

>> Visit the Derby Diocesan Board of Education website

Pictured with Bishops Libby and Malcolm are (l-r): Helen Britten, Duffield, William Gilbert Endowed CE Primary; Louise Nicholson, Stretton Handley CE Primary; Katie Forster, Breadsall CE Primary; Emma-Jane Harry, Bakewell CE Infant; Mark Hibbert, Weston-on-Trent CE Primary;  Francesca Mellor, co-head, Hartshorne CE Primary.

The DBE also welcomes: Liz Wooliscroft, Carsington & Hopton; Jayne Jackson, Castleton; Sarah Bellicoso, Dove Holes CE Primary; Suzanne Gardner, Langley Mill CofE (VC) Infant & Nursery; Jodie Daniels, Rosliston; Jakki Rogers, Whitfield, St Luke's.

We love all the creative and different ways churches are engaging with their parishes and beyond.

Our vision is The Kingdom of God, Good News for All and it's great to see how so many churches in the Diocese of Derby are sharing stories of their success in achieving transformed lives through growing church and building community.

Here are a few that have caught our eye recently:

Bishop Malcolm and his wife, Pam, visited Burundi in East Africa during July and spent time with the Diocese of Bujumbura, learning about ministry and mission in a very different context to the Diocese of Derby.

Bishop Malcolm writes:

Burundi is the poorest country in the world – the one thing it has in common with Derbyshire is a beautiful landscape of hills and valleys.

Life is very hard indeed for those who live in rural areas – the city is seen as a place of opportunity, which works for some, but even there the need for investment is always apparent.

The shadow of violent episodes in recent history remains, but people are hopeful about the future, and determined to work for peace and greater prosperity.

We found folks extremely hospitable, and rightly proud of their heritage and of their culture.

Travelling around the diocese you see just how precarious peoples’ livelihoods are.

This is especially so where steep slopes are vulnerable to flash floods in the rainy season, often causing devastating mudslides which destroying fields, homes, livelihoods, and endangering lives also.

One of the inspiring programmes the diocese is engaged with is helping local people get together in cooperatives to grow seedlings and plant trees, so that their roots will protect their fields and gardens from soil erosion.

>> The Bishop of Derby's Harvest Appeal - Trees for life Burundi

Eroded land is washed away by heavy rains

Empowering women and young people

As well as attending a glorious ordination service in the cathedral, and a wedding blessing in a village church, we had the opportunity to visit a range of innovative community projects.

The diocese is very involved in community development, the church working locally on initiatives that empower people living in poverty, especially women and young people.

Churches are full of young people – tiny, inquisitive, eager children everywhere, and older youths enjoying church as a forum for securing friendships and building community.

Whilst music and singing are lively and active, there is real depth and quality to the worship, and a sense that being Christian there is about the whole of life – home, family, livelihood – and the liturgy reflected this.

We just did two tourist things. We visited Lake Tanganyika one afternoon with Bishop Eraste - and given the immense size of the lake, it was like being at the seaside!

And we met the Royal Drummers of Burundi – which you can check out on YouTube – they were fantastic.

I look forward to opportunities to share more about the work of the Diocese of Bujumbura in the autumn, when this year’s harvest appeal will support tree planting projects there.

 +Malcolm

Bishop Eraste Bigirimana at a Bujumbura tree planting event

Carpenter Steve, who lives in the parish of Boulton St Mary and regularly attends St Philip's Chaddesden, recently revived his carpentry skills and says Jesus guided him in making a cross for the church.

He joined a “men in sheds” group in Allenton and decided to use some of the wood meant for landfill to make a cross as a surprise for Philip's.

Whilst making the cross, Steve believes he had an encounter with Jesus.

He shared the encounter with the congregation in July and received an enthusiastic response.

He said: “I decided to make a cross as a surprise for the church.

"My background was in carpentry, but I haven’t used my skills for a while.

"When I started my arm got heavy and I couldn’t understand why.

"A short time later, I got the hammer and chisel and my hands felt hard and heavy. I thought this was unusual as I never normally feel like this when doing carpentry work!

"A voice came in my head and said 'we’ll make this together'.

"I was a taken aback as the voice was clear, and I found myself asking out aloud 'who are you?'."

Steve said: "The next thing I heard was 'I am Jesus, and we will make this together. It will be a special cross for your church'.” 

Steve proudly presented the cross to Revd Sarah Watson, Enabling Minister at St Philip’s.

“Steve joined us with an interest in faith," said Revd Sarah. "He is a dearly loved member of our congregation and was recently confirmed.

"The recalling of his personal encounter with Jesus was emotional to hear and the cross will be seen and appreciated by all as Canon Julian Hollywell, Priest-in-charge of St Philip’s, has given his blessing for the cross to be placed permanently on our high altar.”

By Reggie D. Edmonds

Tideswell parishioner Sonia Rigg has been raising money for her local church through hang gliding.

And the feat is even more impressive given that Sonia is in her 85th year!

Sonia decided to support her local church, which is in dire need of re-wiring at a cost of around £200,000.

With the issues of ancient wiring and lighting, Sonia is hoping her church will really benefit from her endeavours.

She had been hoping to do the flight since April, but the weather wasn’t favourable. Now she is delighted to finally have had a huge success with this event.

Why hang gliding? Well, besides this just being an incredible idea, the inspiration came from her son, who has been hang gliding for 40 years.

Sonia said: “It was a really lovely experience. I could see all around and the views were super.

“Lying prone, you’re looking down and I had plenty of time to look.

“I wasn’t at all frightened.”

>> See the video of Sonia's hang gliding session [YouTube]

She achieved her goal with huge help from former world champion Judy Leden MBE and Ashbourne Hang Gliding Club.

Sonia is known for being active, and used to cycle and sail with her late husband.

She has no plans to stop taking part in charity events like this, hopefully having inspired many others to follow in her footsteps in doing awesome things to help out.

So far, Sonia has raised nearly £3,000 and donations are still coming in.

PCC Secretary Barbara Richell writes:

West Hallam's annual Well Dressing takes place every July.

This year at St Wilfrid’s we decided that our well would celebrate the 75th anniversary of the NHS.

This year, 22 of us were involved in producing our well and bringing our image of Jesus healing the paralysed man to life. 

The Revd Jan Hutchinson blessed all the wells at the start of the celebrations and was the star of the show on Facebook. 

The church was busy with entertainment provided by ‘Sing West Hallam’, The Imari Chorus and The Recorder Orchestra.

The bell ringers gave opportunities for visitors to ‘have a go’ and have some possible new recruits.

In spite of the heavy showers it was a very busy, successful day!

On Monday 3 July, Derby Cathedral school held an official opening and blessing ceremony for their new building on Great Northern Road, Derby.

The ceremony featured music and readings from students and those who have been involved in the creation of the school.

Dean Peter gave a reflection on the relationship between the Cathedral and the school and the how important that is for the whole community. 

Students have also created a time capsule full of reflections of their time at the school.  

The service ended with the new school prayer which has been written by the student FAITH ambassador group. 

Interim Director of Education, Carolyn Lewis said: “I was delighted to attend the official opening and blessing ceremony of Derby Cathedral School on 3 July.  The school is particularly special being the first secondary school in our family of 111 Church of England schools in the Diocese of Derby.  Since opening its doors in 2018, the school has grown admitting additional year groups annually.  This September, the school will open its new Sixth Form and make headlines for being the only Church of England Sixth Form in the country.”

Ten pupils from Church of England Schools from all over the diocese have received their Bishop's Badge in recognition of their commitment to Christian values in their schools and communities.

The badges were presented by Bishop Malcom in a service at Derby Cathedral and were nominated by their head teacher for their generous faith, courageous hope and life-giving love.

Pupils from St James CE Junior School led readings and prayers.

Nominating Jack, his head teacher said: "Jack took it upon himself to raise money for charity by completing a 5 km inflatable course. He requested that all donations go to the Sick Children's Trust Charity which is a charity close to his family’s heart, and has asked questions to find out how he and others can help children who are sick. Jack also shows great compassion in and out of school and was recently nominated to become an anti-bullying ambassador.

"He is very aware of the thoughts and feelings of others and values difference greatly."

Another head teacher said: "George works hard to encompass his love of nature and history to serve the Lord. He shares his knowledge generously to support the school and local community. 

"George has helped to transform the lives of others by actively working with the younger children in school to be a role model independently taking on the role of pastoral support to make sure all children in school are safe, well and have a voice.

"He has taken on the role of head boy this year however, at no point has he ever put himself first he continues to put others including the adults in school first."

Other citations from head teachers included:

As Hebrews 13:16 states, ‘Generosity is a simple act’ – however, in Amber’s case, it is a way of life. Amber leads worship with dedication and empathy. She is a great friend to others and offers support to not only her peers, but to staff and visitors too. Her caring and supportive nature is ever-present and this is typified in the way she conducts herself around younger children in the school.

Cara goes above and beyond to show love and support to her peers; always noticing if someone is struggling or left out and offering friendship; showing what it means to build community by supporting and welcoming everyone. Her unquestioning support for others during tough times, even when she herself has been experiencing difficult situations, is transforming to those who she stands alongside and a model for others to follow.

Frankie shows kindness, always helping the younger children. She happily gives up her own social time to help others. Frankie lives out our school values of P.E.A.C.E – and this nomination demonstrates how she meets the C for compassion. 

Despite the challenges that he has faced over the last year, Freddie has remained able to put the needs of others first. He is a fabulous role model and has earned almost all available prefect badges. He has generously shared his treatment journey with the whole school, embodying courage and inspiring his peers through his complete dedication to all that he does. As a school community, we are stronger for knowing and working with him.

Manahil shines God’s love onto everyone she meets. She encourages and supports her friends and champions them when they have done well in class or out on the playground. She reaches out when she sees someone in need and truly embodies our school’s Christian values of love, friendship, compassion and respect.

Martha is a driving force behind writing the school’s Friday worship, which she does without being prompted. Her prayers are heartfelt, beautifully sensitive and reflects meaningful links to school worship themes. Martha is generous – she gives her own time for others, despite facing many significant personal challenges. Martha cares deeply about her family, her school and broader community.

Spending time in Mia’s company enriches everyone. She does not change things by being argumentative or forceful but by modeling unfailing love. She is one of our school chaplains and works to ensure all children and adults feel welcomed and part of our collective worship. I aspire to be as positive and loving as Mia!