Dear Friends,

I am sending this email in my capacity as Ringing Master of the North Wales Association of Church Bell Ringers.

I am sure that everyone is aware of the present Government advice on unnecessary social gatherings and unnecessary travel. In addition the Church in Wales has advised the cancellation of all church services and any activities which involve social gatherings. Similar advice has been given by all Governments and church organisations across the UK.

In line with this advice the North Wales Association and its branches have cancelled, until further notice, all meetings, practices and training events. I also understand that all towers in North Wales have stopped practicing and there are no services to ring for. This seems to be in line with what is happening across the UK.

The best guess seems to be that this state of affairs will continue for at least three months, perhaps longer.

I believe that there are things we can do to look after our colleague ringers and ensure that we are in as strong a state as possible to resume ringing when we are able to do so.

It has brought home to me just how much that ringing is a social activity. I would urge everyone to set up mechanisms so that bands of ringers can maintain social contact without actually meeting up. The obvious way to do this is via social media like Facebook, Whatsapp Groups or just a good old fashioned mobile phone!!

The Central Council of Church Bellringers has issued a play list of ringing films and documentaties.

Many ringers will be socially distancing or self isolating. They may be glad of any contact. 

We can use the interruption to our normal activities to catch up with all those maintenance jobs in the tower that we never quite have time to do. However there are Health and Safety considerations. Lone working in towers is not encouraged. If you are going to do work in a tower on your own then please take extra care and I would suggest as a minimum that you have a fully charged mobile phone with you and that you arrange to call someone else at regular intervals. There should be an agreed plan of action if you fail to make a scheduled call. At the very minimum I would suggest that one person visits the tower at least once per week so that any issues are picked up and acted on early.

The present situation is being compared to the ban on ringing during the Second World War but it is subtly different. From 1940 to 1943 ringers were allowed to meet and socialise but bells could not be sounded. Now we can sound the bells but not meet or socialise. Some people will miss the regular sound of bells being rung, particularly the infirm and housebound.

The sounding of bells across the British Isles has long been an emotive sound welcomed and enjoyed by many if not all! By the ringing or chiming of individual bells, the use of Ellacombe chiming devices or automatic chimes they can play perhaps a more important role now than ever. If there is the local will to do so, I suggest that ringers should agree with their local church authorities a set time and day of the week when a bell or bells will be sounded to let everyone know that they have not been abandoned or forgotten. If you decide to go down this route use any local media or social media to let people know what you are doing and why. Stress that you are operating within Government and Church guidelines.

Please feel free to give me feedback on what I have said if you so wish. Also to suggest anything else we could or should be doing.

I hope and pray that the present situation will be resolved as soon as possible and that we all stay safe. 

Best wishes

Peter Furniss (With help from Beverley on the more technical bits!!)
Ringing Master - North Wales Association

PS.  Many churches are sounding a single bell or otherwise sounding bells, without groups of ringers getting together, in order to bring comfort and succour to people at this difficult time.