I have just returned from a very interesting weekend in Exeter at the annual meeting of the Central Council of Church Bell Ringers (CCCBR). I think that there are many ringers who are still unaware of the existence of the Central Council let alone its purpose.
The Central Council is the international governing body of change ringing and, as such, provides advice and support for bell ringers as well as leading various regional or national strategies and events. These have included ringing schools in different regions across the country and the co-ordination of the ringing for the Coronation including the Ring for the King project.
The KCACR is one of 65 associations, guilds and societies that are affiliated to the Central Council and, as such, has a voice in the decisions that are made through the Central Council Representatives who we elect at each AGM. Unfortunately, I was the only one of the elected representatives who was able to attend the meeting this year but Sue Bassett, our Training Officer and former General Secretary, was allowed to attend as a substitute for one of our other representatives.
The meeting provides an opportunity for the Central Council to report on its activity throughout the previous 12 months and for the Representatives to scrutinise and ask questions of these activities. The Representatives are also able to vote on the proposals put forward at the meeting. This year, the meeting focused on the development of the Ringing 2030 campaign, particularly the progress that has been made in various areas to help enable the project to gain momentum.
I have mentioned the Ringing 2030 project before but feel that it is worth raising its profile again as it will affect all of us in some way. The bottom line is that the ringing population is aging and there are too few recruits coming in to sustain ringing at the level that it is currently at. The way in which we recruit and train ringers needs to change from the ways that have previously been sufficient.
New recruits to ringing can find that the teaching of ringing can be haphazard, perhaps a 5 minute burst during a practice night each week. Progress will be slow and frustrating and the recruits may lose interest. We need to look outside of ringing in order to find examples of ways in which we can make recruitment and training work within ringing.
There are good ideas in place already. I frequently talk about ART training. Whether you are new to teaching ringing or, like me, have been teaching basic handling for some time, the ART M1 course is definitely worth signing up for. It provides ideas and support for those who are new to teaching and provides those who have been teaching for years with an opportunity to look at how they are currently teaching bell handling and whether they could include other elements that might help some learners grasp the concepts more quickly.
The Central Council is very keen to develop training opportunities across the country but currently does not have the resources to manage this due to all of the members being volunteers. Many other voluntary organisations have a small number of salaried staff and the Central Council has decided that they also need to finally go down this route. This will have an impact on affiliated groups as they will need to subsidise this cost and it was agreed at the meeting that the affiliation fees should rise to £0.40 per member in January 2025 and then to £1.00 per member in January 2026. For some, this may seem contentious. However, if we do nothing then we have seen what will happen because ringing is dwindling. By agreeing to this, the Representatives and Executive of the Central Council believe that it will provide greater financial support to develop the Ringing 2030 programme and start to increase the number of ringers.
As we head towards the end of September, can I just remind you all that the Association 6-Bell Competitions takes place at St George’s Church, Beckenham, on Saturday 28th September. The 6-bell Inter-District Method Competition will take place in the morning with the draw at 9:45 and the Call-Change competition will take place in the afternoon with the draw at 2.00pm. If you would like to enter a team into the Call-Change competition, please do let me know by Saturday 21st September. As with last year, there will be a limit of 10 teams able to enter this so please do not leave your entry until the last minute.
The rules for both competitions are available on the KCACR website at: https://kcacr.org.uk/association/resources
Another reminder: we will be holding an Association Evensong at Canterbury Cathedral on Sunday 17th November. The service begins at 17:30 and all members are invited to attend. More details will follow once the arrangements have been finalised.
Finally, you may be aware of the ‘Fun With Bells’ podcast, which is released on a monthly basis and covers all aspects of ringing. This month, the podcast features three of our young ringers being interviewed by Cathy Booth, the presenter, in the first of two episodes about Kent Young Ringers. Here is a link to the podcast: https://funwithbells.com/
Neil Jones
KCACR Chairman