I always find Canon Graham Blyth’s letters to your paper stimulating and the one in last week’s Standard was no exception.

It is indeed good that churches are open again. However, I must point out an inaccuracy in his letter. He writes, “Both All Saints’ and St Mary’s are currently in vacancy.”

This is true of All Saints’ but it is not true of St Mary’s. I remain as Priest in Charge and there are no immediate plans for me to step down.

Your readers will have seen in the columns of this paper that exciting things are happening at St Mary’s. The new churchyard sculpture by John Doubleday was unveiled in August and currently a splendid organ is being installed on a new gallery.

Our normal Sunday pattern of services has resumed and three baptisms have taken place in church in the last month.

All our services are live-streamed and we have just launched a new website. So you can see that St Mary’s Church is in good heart and is continuing to serve the eastern part of Maldon as it has done for the past 900 years.

Father John Dickens

Priest in Charge

St Mary’s, Maldon