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To celebrate the feast of Our Lady of Walsingham on Tuesday 24 September, children at St Bernadette’s Catholic Primary School in Brighton learned about Marian apparitions all over the world and linked Our Lady of Walsingham to their namesake, St Bernadette Soubirous and Our Lady of Lourdes. In the video above, the wonderful singers in Year 4 can be seen recreating a beautiful torchlight procession in their school hall, as part of their weekly Schools Singing Programme session.

The Diocese launched its Schools Singing Programme in 2023, inspired by the model originally developed by the Diocese of Leeds. Through the SSP, the Diocese is able to deliver outstanding singing tuition, music education and performance opportunities to children and young people attending state primary schools in Sussex and Surrey, with expert guidance and tuition provided by two full-time Choral Directors.

The Vatican has granted permission for Our Lady of Walsingham to be celebrated as a new Feast in the dioceses of England, starting this year. Announcing the change, Cardinal Roche said he hoped that the new Feast day would strengthen the faithful:

“May this yearly celebration be a source of renewed grace and evangelical endeavour for the Church in England and Wales, as, imitating Mary, the faithful may ever more become disciples of her Son, receive the message of the Gospel, treasure it in their hearts and reflect on it in their minds”.

‍To find out more about the diocesan Schools Singing Programme, click the button below.‍