First Holy Communion

Congratulations!

We would like to offer our congratulations to the children who have recently received their First Holy Communion. It has been a pleasure to assist your parents in preparing you for this wonderful occasion and we look forward to seeing you all at Mass as you come back again and again to receive Jesus. We will continue to pray for you and your families, and we ask that you remember us in your prayers too.

 New Registrations for 2024-25

We are now welcoming registrations for the coming year. The course will run from September 2024 to May 2025, with First Holy Communion celebrations throughout June and into July 2025. The course includes First Confession, which is celebrated in late January / early February. 

We look forward to supporting you and your family as you bring your child forward to receive the sacraments. It is a great blessing for us and our parish that we can journey together during this special year in your child’s life.

In order to register for this year’s course to receive First Holy Communion in June 2025, children must be at least the age to enter school Year 3 in September 2024 (i.e. born on or before 31st August 2017). The course book we use is aimed at Year 3 children, but we use a variety of resources to accompany this so our course is suitable for anyone in Years 3-6. Older children are also very welcome, but please email us before completing the registration form so that we can discuss the right approach.

If you have any queries, please email us at olemfirstcommunion@rcdea.org.uk

On registration, you will need to give the date and parish of your child’s Baptism. We will need to see your child’s original Baptism certificate at their first class (not a photocopy or electronic version). If you do not have their original Baptism certificate, please contact the parish where they were baptised and request a replacement certificate as soon as possible, as these things can take time, particularly if the parish is abroad.

If your child is not yet baptised, you can enter this detail the form and the parish will work with you to prepare your child for Baptism at Easter 2025, ready to receive their First Holy Communion in June with the rest of the children.

Please complete the online registration form by clicking the button below:

 Key Dates

  • Register NOW (see button above) !

  • Locate your child’s Baptism certificate as soon as possible

  • Registration deadline: Friday 8 September 2024

  • Parent meeting via Zoom in early September – date TBC

  • Please make yourself available on Sunday mornings for classes from Sunday 15th September onwards (your exact start date will be given after registrations close)

  • Schedule of key dates for the September 2024 – June 2025 course to follow

  • First Confession in late January / early February 2025

  • First Holy Communion in June / early July 2025 (families will be able to choose from four weekends)

Structure of the Course

We will teach roughly half of the course in person in the parish centre and the other half online using Zoom, alternating between these. Children will have two lessons a month, roughly one in person and one online. We will give you a schedule of dates which makes clear where and when each lesson will take place.

The lessons in person will be at 8.00am in the Parish Hall. Parents are welcome to stay in the small meeting room next to the hall during the class or drop the children off and collect at 9.15am. Many families choose to then attend 9.30am Mass, during which there is a children’s Liturgy of the Word for younger children (starting at 9.30am in the Hall).

Online lessons will take place at 9.00am using Zoom. We ask that an adult is present in the room with the child for the duration of the lesson, both for safeguarding purposes and to help your child engage with the lesson.

Depending on numbers, we will allocate the children between two or three groups.

Course Materials

Our course book is Jesus Comes to Me by Dora Nash. We will provide this book for each child along with some other books that we use during the course (including the children’s Simple Prayer Book and Simple Mass Book), so there is no need for you to buy it in advance. We will ask for a voluntary donation towards the course materials.

Parent Catechesis

We plan to offer five catechesis sessions for parents during the course. This will be delivered via Zoom on weekday evenings. These dates will be confirmed at the start of the course. 

Diocesan Guidelines

Please download and read our Diocesan Guidelines via the button below. You may also find the First Holy Communion Reflective Document useful to read through (produced by the Archdiocese of Edinburgh).

Please contact us at olemfirstcommunion@rcdea.org.uk with any queries.