 Infant Baptism
Infant baptism (babies and young children) is a sacramental service held on behalf of your child. 'Sacramental' means that during the service we are carrying out symbolic actions that signify what we believe the Lord to have done for the child(ren) already - chiefly welcoming the child into the Kingdom of God through Jesus' costly sacrifice upon the Easter cross.
During a service of baptism we thank God for the gift of life and pray that the child will begin her/his journey of faith with the support of their parents, godparents and the Church itself. We also ask for God's blessing upon the child, and for the guidance of the Holy Spirit to anoint them (symbolised through the anointing with oil), the Light of Christ to shine in and through them (symbolised by the Baptism candle being lit from the Paschal candle which represent Christ Jesus), and the cleansing from sin and healing power of God through Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit (symbolised through the pouring of water over the child's head). When anointed, the sign of the cross is made upon their forehead as an invisible 'stamp' that the child now belongs to Christ.
Parents and Godparents
Parents and godparents play a central role in the baptism of a child for they make promises on behalf of them. You and they will have to declare publicly your faith in God, that you renounce evil, turn from sin and intend to bring your child up to follow Jesus as Lord and Saviour. These promises are made before the entire congregation, and it is a good idea that you check that your chosen godparents feel able to make these promises and declarations before others in a public. You can read the promises and declarations here.
Godparents are normally two of the same gender as the child(ren) and one the opposite gender. They need not only to be able to genuinely make the declarations and promises on behalf of you child(ren), but to be people that you can rely on to take a genuine interest in your child(ren) spiritually, and in you and your child(ren) during life's ups and downs.
The whole congregation then promises to support you and your family in helping you bring up your child(ren) in the Christian faith, and to pray for you. There will often be representatives of Mother's Union or Junior Church from the parish present who will introduce themselves. Although you will be eager to go and celebrate after the Baptism service, don't hesitate to come back to Church at a later date and find out about the young family networks, fun, friendship, fellowship and support groups available in your parish.
There are theological reasons why some persons choose not to have their baby/children baptised, and these can be further explored here. Some people also mistakenly think of Baptism as a thanksgiving service for the arrival of a new child, whereas it is actually an initiation rite into the Christian Church, and in particular the Anglican Church (Church of England).
The Church has a special service for the Thanksgiving of a Gift of a Child. It might be that Baptism follows at a later date, possible even in adulthood.
Adult baptism occurs when a person has not been baptised or 'christened' as a child and comes to faith. To mark their own personal turning from darkness to light, and their decision to follow Jesus Christ, the Light of the World, they will make this first step of Christian Initiation. Jesus Himself, asked John the Baptist to baptise Him in the river Jordan. When John pointed out that he was not worthy even to kiss Jesus' feet, Jesus insisted that He too must fulfill all the requirements of the faith, including repentance with baptism for the cleansing of sin and turning towards God. St Matthew records that before His ascension Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." (Matthew 28:18-20)
In some parish churches it is possible to undergo 'full-immersion' baptism (where a person is baptised by being taken bodily under water (very, very briefly I might add!) if they have a baptismal tank available, whereas most churches will still pour water from the font over a person's head, usually using a shell.
The main difference between an Infant and Adult baptism, is that adults make their own declarations and promises instead of godparents and parents, and instead they have two sponsors who will act as prayer supporters and friends. They will often be more mature (not necessarily old!) Christians who have played a significant part of their journey to faith.
The Baptism Service
Because Baptism is a service of initiation into the Christian church they usually take place within a normal Sunday morning Eucharist (Holy Communion) service. This signifies the person truly joining the family of God through the Church and gives everyone a chance to actually meet you and your family properly.
The font itself is usually near the door of the church, at the rear. Again, this is to signify that we begin our journey of faith through baptism, and then move towards the altar where we will, after Confirmation, receive Holy Communion. Consequently, the parents/godparents/sponsors and baptism candidates will move to the font at the back of the church for their baptism.
After the Baptism the service will continue as usual and the newly baptised will return to the main body of the congregation as new members. For the full text of the service please click here.
Some churches do operate a policy of baptism outside of the normal Sunday service and you may wish to expressly request that your baptism or the baptism of your child is held within the Sunday service itself. Conversely, there are occasions when difficulties may necessitate negotiating for a private baptism at another time. Please do contact your local parish priest/vicar who will be happy to advise you on the most appropriate course of action for your needs.
Baptism is free, although there may be an administrative charge payable to the parish, particularly is the service is outside of the normal Sunday service.
Thanksgiving Service
Some people prefer to have a Thanksgiving Service. They want to acknowledge their delight at the gift of a new child and to thank God for their new baby, and would like the faith community to pray for them as a family and ask for God's blessing upon the child.
However, they wish their child to be baptized having made their own profession of faith (see adult baptism above). This does not mean that the child cannot be baptized until they are over 16, it simply means that when a child's own faith leads them to request baptism for themselves their family will support them in arranging to be baptised at whatever age that happens.
In the Anglican church all children/adults have to be baptised in order to be Confirmed (which is the confirmation of the baptismal vows) and some young people/adults will choose to do both closely together. It is also usual for those wishing to be married by the Church to both be baptised. | 
