BAPTISM PREPARATION

Parents who want to have their child baptised in one of the churches in the Solent Pastoral Area are asked to attend a programme to help them prepare for this important sacrament. Our baptism preparation group will guide you through a relaxed programme to help understand what is involved in nurturing your child’s spiritual journey until their confirmation. It will also explain the deep significance of what happens in the baptism service itself.

We generally run four or more preparation programmes a year. The next one will be held in November 2025. The closing date for applications is midday on Friday 24 October 2025 (Please use the Baptism Preparation Form at the link below). Before applying, please ensure that you will be available to attend the following events:

Meet and Greet introduction – 8 November 10.00am at St Philip Howard church, Bishopsfield Road, Fareham PO141ND.

Online Session 1 – Tuesday 18 November 8.00pm 

Online session 2 – Tuesday 25 November 8.00pm

There are six stages to the Baptism Preparation Process

       1.            Complete an online Baptism Information Form - View the document here

       2.            The receipt of the form will be acknowledged by a ‘welcome’ phone call from a Catechist. This will give you an opportunity to ask                                       questions.

       3.            Private discussion with a priest, deacon or lay catechists who will determine if you are ready to take on the responsibility of bringing your                       child up as a practising Catholic.

             Note – if you are well known to your Parish Priest he may decide this stage is not necessary.

       4.           A Saturday morning meeting with a priest or deacon to meet all the other couples face-to-face. You will have another chance to ask any                       questions you may have. You and your child will receive a blessing.

       5.            Two online Zoom sessions (8:00pm - 9:30pm) with lay volunteer catechists to learn about the significance of all the parts of the                                           Sacrament of Baptism.

       6.            The arrangement of the date, time and venue of your child’s Baptism. This will be done in discussion with your Parish Office.

                     Stages 1-3 need to be completed before moving on to the later stages. If completion is not possible, either due to a difficulty in arranging                       a meeting date with the Priest or because the Priest decides you are not quite ready to take on the responsibility of bringing your child                           up as a practising Catholic, the last three stages will be deferred to the next session. There will be no need to fill in another Information                           Form.

Note - For parents who regularly attend St Margaret Mary Church, Park Gate you should first contact their Parish Office directly for more information on how to register. Please do not complete the information form using the links on this webpage at this stage.