As February draws to a close, thoughts are turning to the Association AGM at Tenterden on Monday 6th April. As previously mentioned, both Joanne Pohl, our Honorary General Secretary, and myself are standing down from our positions this year. I had intended to step down from the position of Chairman in 2025 but, having had nobody willing to take on s (ARTthe role, have already stayed in office for a year longer than planned. With my new role as Chairman of the Association of Ringing Teacher) beginning in March, there may be a potential conflict of interest in some matters should I continue as KCACR Chairman.
The KCACR General Committee plays a vital role in keeping everything ticking along — from promoting the interests of the Association and organising competitions, to encouraging recruitment of new ringers and shaping the future direction of the KCACR. We’re always grateful to those who give their time and energy, and we’re keen to hear from anyone who might like to get involved or to encourage others to do so.
Nominations are now open and there are a couple of ways in which you can nominate members to be part of the General Committee. Firstly, nominations can be made via a simple online form using this link. Alternatively please download the nomination form and send it to the General Secretary. All nominations need to be submitted by the deadline (29 March).
You are very welcome to nominate a fellow member (with their consent!) who you think would be a good fit for a committee role. Equally, if you’re interested in standing yourself, please don’t hesitate to have a conversation with another member and ask them to nominate you. Taking part in this process is a wonderful way to support the Association and ensure it continues to reflect the interests of its members.
If you’d like to know more about what’s involved in a committee role, or if you have any questions at all about the process, please don’t hesitate to contact either the General Secretary or myself.
Please do mention the seminar on leadership that we have planned to your tower members. It is going to be held at St John the Baptist, Bredgar, ME9 8EX on Saturday 9th May between 2.00pm and 5:30pm. This has been organised for tower captains, budding tower captains and those who are, or hope to be running the ringing at their tower, district or elsewhere as well as for those who are just curious to find out more about elements of leadership.
This will provide a range of discussions and input on subjects related to leadership in ringing; for example, what may need to be considered when running a practice and will provide an opportunity to share ideas with others in a similar role. There will be no charge for the event but a donation towards the use of the church and refreshments would be appreciated. If you are interested in attending, please let me know via
The Association and our Districts organise a wide range of different types of training. A lot of this is at a District level as it enables Districts to focus more directly on the needs of the members in that area. However, some Districts are beginning to offer training to a broader audience as it provides opportunities for members to have opportunities to ring something that may not be available within their own tower or area.
It may be that you are not aware that there are also some residential ringing courses arranged across the Country where ringers can sign up for intensive sessions in specific areas over the course of 2 or 3 days. Some, such as the North-West Ringing Course, may be too far away to make it worthwhile attending. However, there are a couple of courses closer to home which run on an annual basis that may be worth considering.
The first is the Essex Course, arranged by the Essex Association. This usually takes place around Easter each year. It is fully booked for 2026 but they will be announcing the 2027 dates in due course. The second is the Bradfield Ringing Course, near Reading. This takes place in mid-August and booking will open at the beginning of April.
I know from talking to ringers who have attended ringing course in the past, whether as students or as helpers, that these have been an invaluable way of being able to learn an aspect of ringing, whether it is just being able to develop ringing rounds and moving on to call changes or trying to make the step up to ringing Surprise Major.
To finish, I will return to the forthcoming Association Annual General Meeting. The Association only functions because of its members. We are members of the Association because we want to ensure that ringing continues, especially within the area of the KCACR. The Association exists to support ringers, to help give them a voice and to help maintain the bells in its area. We rely on members being willing to volunteer to take on positions at Association level in order to help make this happen. Please do consider standing as a General Committee member at the AGM and help enable us to continue to achieve our aims.
Neil Jones
KCACR Chairman