Central Council Annual Meeting & Mini-Roadshow 2019

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Published: Saturday, 14 September 2019 22:06

The Central Council of Church Bell Ringers (CCCBR) met in London 6-8th Sept 2019 for the 122nd Annual Meeting, the first in a revised format since the introduction of the Council Review Action Group (CRAG) CRAG reforms voted in unanimously by Council Representatives at the meeting last year in Lancaster.

Based at Goldsmith’s College, London, this was a relatively local meeting for the Sussex Reps, and an opportunity for ringers to participate and ring locally.

Friday ringing had been organised afternoon at several churches within the City of London, and at other towers around the capital where there is often not a full band. A tour of the belfry and ringing room at St Paul’s Cathedral was very popular.

A buffet supper was provided in the refectory at Goldsmith’s on Friday evening and immediately followed by a quiz, a good icebreaker and a chance to network with other council members and ringers who were attending, as it was open to all. Expertly led by Phil Barnes of the Kent Association, teams were named after famous ringers; the Sussex Reps being known as Team Carter. Ably assisted by a ringer from Hampshire and the two Scottish Reps we came a respectable joint third!

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Mini-Roadshow (6-8 Sept 2019, Goldsmiths College, London)

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Published: Monday, 12 August 2019 21:23

Interesting and entertaining talks, trade and retail stands, training bells to try, mini-rings to have a go on, real ale, and the opportunity to ring at iconic City of London churches - what more could you wish for from a day out?!

Whether you’ve been ringing for six months or sixty years, you’ll find something new at the Roadshow! Registration is open - just £12, and FREE for under-18s.

The programme of 21 talks and interactive discussion sessions brings together expert speakers on a diverse range of subjects. Talks and discussion sessions (Sunday 8th September):

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Sussex ringer Alison sets a fine national example

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Published: Thursday, 25 July 2019 22:42

Alison volunteered for a neighbouring Guild hosting the annual Central Council meeting in 2016, to find out more about the wider world of bellringing. She answered the call ‘the future of bellringing needs you’ and found herself involved in more than PR for Sussex! Now on the Central Council Executive, her story is about the journey, the collaborations and the opportunities for everyone to be involved and help shape and preserve the future of bellringing.

Rising to the challenge

Little did I realise three years ago, when I volunteered as a helper at the Central Council Annual Meeting, hosted by the Winchester & Portsmouth Guild, that I would find myself writing about taking on a role as an Executive Trustee within that reforming body. I didn’t know what the Council was, I asked around and was met with a variety of opinions. It seemed the only way to find out was to immerse myself in it. I applied to join the team called for after said 2016 meeting – ‘the future of bellringing needs you’ caught my attention in an ‘email to all’ from our Association Master.

Having not long ago discovered this immersive hobby I was sufficiently intrigued to investigate further why it might be in danger and once I’d started digging I was hooked.

Read the full story on the Central Council news feed

Sussex Young Ringers compete in Liverpool

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Published: Sunday, 14 July 2019 21:53

I can safely report the Ringing World National Youth Contest trophy has safely made it to Liverpool and been handed to the new RWNYC champions, Oxford. Sadly we couldn’t defend our title this year, and settled with a commendable 6th place. We stepped up this year and rang Grandsire Triples, making us one of only a few teams to ring a method out of the 24 competing teams.

We ventured up to Liverpool by train on Friday 5th and stayed two nights in a hotel over the whole weekend. The Friday night saw some of us head over to St Nicholas Pierhead for their weekly 12-bell practice, while others stayed at the Hotel for dinner. On Saturday we were lucky to be drawn to ring third, meaning we could spend the rest of the day tower grabbing in Liverpool! The competition tower was St Francis Xavier’s; a beautiful Roman Catholic Church. We found the bells challenging, with some interesting acoustics, but our hard work and preparation meant we could produce some top striking on these bells. Our feedback from the judges after the results in the evening commended our solid speed and purpose, with small striking mistakes not detracting from the overall quality.

The rest of Saturday saw us grabbing towers around Liverpool such as the 8s at Penny Lane and Bootle. We also got another chance to ring at Pierhead, an absolutely fantastic 12. It was great to ring Grandsire cinques at Pierhead and show other teams our 12-bell skills. Some older ringers doubt the skills of young ringers, but in Sussex we pride ourselves on being able to ring a variety of methods from 6 to 12 bells, and do it with confidence and skill.

The highlight for many was the chance to ring at Liverpool Cathedral after the competition results were announced. The Cathedral bells are the heaviest and highest in the world – It was a long way up! The experience of ringing these massive bells inside a huge ringing chamber, surrounded by 100s of young ringers, adults and friends, was astonishing.

The final result was a little disappointing, but we knew we gave it out all, and had done Sussex proud. We will be back next year (location tbc) to compete again and build on our ringing this year.

Thanks to our coordinators, Anne and Sandra, and our supporters over the weekend. It was a blast!

Josh Hutchinson