BEDFORDSHIRE ASSOCIATION OF CHURCH BELL RINGERS

Update

May 2026  

2026 Annual General Meeting - Saturday 16 May

This year's AGM is being held at St Andrew's Biggleswade, please come!
As its not possible to have afternoon ringing at Biggleswade, we've arranged afternoon ringing at Clifton (8), 2.00-3.15pm. This is for everyone, all levels will be catered for. Finishing at 3.15pm, there will be time to get to St Andrews for the service at 4.00pm.

This year we're going to have a 'traditional' ringers tea but we do need names in advance for catering purposes. Please email Marc,  secretary@bacbr.org.uk  - by close of play on Wednesday 13 May. The cost is likely to be in the region of £5.

The timings are as follows:

2.00 - 3.15pm - Afternoon ringing at All Saints Clifton (8)
4.00pm - Service at St Andrews Biggleswade
5.00pm - Tea in St Andrews Church Hall. Names for tea required, email Marc, secretary@bacbr.org.uk as soon as possible and by end of Weds 13 May
6.00pm - The AGM in St Andrews Church Hall. The papers are available on the website here Bedfordshire Association of Church Bell Ringers
7.00pm-ish - 8.45pm - Evening Ringing at St Andrews (10)

Its really important that we have a good turnout for this meeting, please come and show your support  for the Management Group, vote for the 2026-2027 Officers and have your say on how things are run in the coming year.
If you can't make it please send your apologies to Marc, secretary@bacbr.org.uk
 

Forthcoming Events

 Ringing Opportunities
Please remember we ask for a suggested £2 donation/person at Association Ringing Programme events. This is so we can make a donation to the tower being visited. Thanks.

Saturday 2 May, 2.30 - 4.30pm 
General Ringing and Short Business Meeting at Flitton (6) 
This general ringing meeting is for everyone, all levels will be catered for. There will be a short business meeting to elect new members, provide news and updates as necessary. Please let us know that you are coming so we know this will be a viable session.
Sign up in the MemberMojo Store  https://membermojo.co.uk/bacbr/store 
or Email Angela - trainingofficer@bacbr.org.uk
Subject: General Ringing Flitton

Saturday  9 May, 10.00 - 12.30
Second Saturday Training at the R J Sharp Ringing Centre at St Andrew's Biggleswade
10:00 - 11:00  Session 1: Bell handling
11:00 - 11:15  Coffee (and cake!)
11:15 - 12:30  Session 2: Foundation skills - rounds, call changes, Plain Hunt
These sessions are aimed at less experienced Bedfordshire ringers who would like to improve basic skills and confidence.
Session 1: for those who are learning to handle a bell with assistance or wish to improve their handling skills
Session 2: For those who can handle a bell unassisted and wish to improve their bell control and progress to ringing rounds/call changes with others.
We're always looking for experienced ringers to support these sessions. If you'd like more inforamtion either contact Chris for details or come along and see for yourself. Whether you feel you could help with either bell handling (10-11am), foundation skills (11.15-12.30) or both, you'd be most welcome.
Sign up is essential  for both students and helpers please
Email Chris Williams -  christine.williams.bells@gmail.com
Please state whether you are coming to Session 1 or Session 2.
Subject: Second Saturday May
 

Sunday 10 May, 14:30 - 16:30 
Bedfordshire Young Ringers at Campton 
Bedfordshire Young Ringers is for all young ringers aged 18 or under, whatever your ringing experience. (Experienced tutors will be there to help!) Come along to ring with ringers your own age, eat cake and have fun!
For safeguarding reasons, we ask that all young ringers under the age of 18 are accompanied by an adult. Adults do not need to stay for the whole session (though you are very welcome to do so - tea, coffee and a comfortable place to sit will be available). We will need some paperwork to be completed for each young ringer the first time they attend.
 For more details, or to confirm that you are coming please, email:  youngringers@bacbr.org.uk
or via the Bedfordshire Young Ringers WhatsApp Group if you're on that (Please ask to be added to this when you attend a Young Ringers' session).
 

Saturday 16 May - AGM Day - full details above
General Ringing at Clifton (8) 2.00 - 3.15pm
AGM at St Andrews Biggleswade - see full details above.
Service 4.00pm.
Tea 5.00pm. Names for tea are required - please email Marc - secretary@bacbr.org.uk. 
Meeting 6.00pm. Meeting papers at Bedfordshire Association of Church Bell Ringers
Evening Ringing  at St Andrews Biggleswade (10)  7.00ish - 8.45pm

Saturday 30 May, 10.30 - 12.00
Focus practice on Plain Doubles and Plain Minor methods at Colmworth (6)
 For those who would like to:

• ring a range of Plain Doubles and Plain Minor methods.
• practice ringing the treble to doubles or minor.
• ring the tenor behind in doubles. 
• conduct touches.

The range of methods rung will be determined by who comes! 
Please sign up so we know this is a viable session.
Either, in he MemberMojo Store   https://membermojo.co.uk/bacbr/store 
or Email Angela - trainingofficer@bacbr.org.uk email Angela trainingofficer@bacbr.org.uk
Subject: Focus Doubles and Minor Colmworth

Proposed June events - get these dates in your diary!
Please check website calendar for latest situation.

Saturday 6 June, 10.30 - 12.30  - General Ringing and a short business meeting at Eaton Socon (8)
Saturday 13 June, 10:00 - 12:30  Second Saturday Training, RJ Sharp Ringing Centre, St Andrew's, Biggleswade, two sessions.
Sunday 14 June , 14.30 - 16:30  Young Ringers practice at Campton (8)
Saturday 20 June, 14.30 - 16.00 - Focus Practice on Plain Hunt and Bob Doubles  at Potton (6). This is for everyone who can handle a bell safely, ring unassisted in rounds and aimed at those wishing to practice Plain Hunt on 5 or 6 bells, ringing or conducting Bob Doubles or ringing the tenor behind. We will focus on Plain Hunt, plain courses and touches of Plain Bob Doubles and welcome more experienced ringers to help, stand behind and conduct. Other Plain 5/6 bell methods might be rung if there are sufficient ringers to enable this.

2026 Programme
Please note  - Focus Practices aren't specific training events but they can cater for different ringing abilities within the focus theme (other than handling).
 

The Draft July to Dec programme will be put on the website as son as its is available after the AGM.
The Calendar Guide is here BACBR-Calendar-Guide-2026-V1-2-Dec-25.pdf

Short Business Meeting notes are on the website
Notes taken at our short business meetings at General Ringing Meetings are now being loaded onto the website, click here Bedfordshire Association of Church Bell Ringers 

Other notices and news

The 2025 Annual Report will be available soon
Simon Stranks has been working hard to edit and produce the 2025 Annual Report. It will be available in the next week or so and in time for the AGM. 

As a member you'll get a hard copy if you elected to receive one in your Member Mojo renewal. We'll also get a copy to each Bedfordshire tower  with a Tower Contact. 

For who didn't want a hard copy, a pdf file will be on the website as soon as its avialable.

April Commemorative Ringing

Tuesday 21 April at St Mary, Maulden  - 100 Plain Bob Doubles, a special touch to mark what would have been Queen Elizabeth II's 100th birthday. BellBoard

Wednesday 22 April at St John the Baptist, Flitton - 100 Grandsire Doubles, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the birth of Queen Elizabeth II on 21st April 1926. BellBoard

Sunday 26 April  at St Paul, Bedford - 1250 Cambridge Surprise Major, rung in memory of The Revd. J Michael Stephens who learned to ring at Kempston, was a former Secretary and Treasurer of the Bedfordshire Association, and a founding member of the original 'Bedfordshire Young Ringers', whose funeral took place at Kirkbymoorside the following day.BellBoard

Ringing meetings
Unfortunately the April's General Ringing Meeting at Bromham had to be cancelled because there weren't enough sign ups to make it viable.
The Plain Hunt and Bob Doubles session at Houghton Regis on the 25th April  was well attended and good progress was made by all who came; we could have done with a few more helpers though!

After the AGM we will be planning the ringing programme for the rest of the year and it would be useful to  know your thoughts. - send your feedback to feedback@bacbr.org.uk .
The programme was revised and simplified earlier this year  in response to your  feedback. Although we know its not universally popular, we explained that sign up, for the time being,  is the only way we know if a meeting will be feasible to run and worthwhile for everyone.
We're planning to have a new website calendar that will allow you to say 'yes' or  'may be able to come' to a ringing event,  let us know if you'd find this useful.
 

Save the Date! Blunham Bells, Beer and Bangers 2026 
Come and join us for our fifth year of Bells, Beer and Bangers on Saturday 25 July, 2 – 6 pm;
Open ringing 2.00 – 3.30 pm.
Sup local ales, tuck into locally produced bangers and burgers. Cakes and other refreshments are also available. 
Thank you to all who have been supporting our bell restoration project.  We have now raised around £45,000 of our £75,000 target. 
For more information contact Davina on blunham@bacbr.org.uk

For more information please see the website here www.bacbr.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Southill-Park-tour-5-June-2026.pdf

2026 Subscriptions payment and preferences renewal  with Member Mojo

Sorry to mention this again but there are still just over 50 members who haven't  renewed yet their membership details and paid a subscription for 2026. If you haven't completed your return and paid your subscription yet please do so as soon as possible using the link in the original  3rd December 2025 renewal email,  this has all the instructions you need to update your details and preferences (to receive comms and request a printed annual report) - and pay your annual subscription. 

 If you can't find this email you'll need to sign in with your email address using the Association's direct secure account home page link -  http://membermojo.co.uk/bacbr 
Further information to help you is on the Association website here Bedfordshire Association of Church Bell Ringers 

Tower Contacts can help us by reminding their member ringers to do this, maybe members still to respond are those who have previously set a preference not to receive these Updates! 

Got a new email address? - if you've changed your email address from the original one you gave us (and you haven't already updated this in your Member Mojo account), you'll still need to use the original one to get into Member Mojo, then you can update your details with your new address. Let us know if you can't receive emails to your old address anymore and we can set it to your new one for you. The system is driven by your email address not passwords, so please keep this up to date through out the year as necessary.
It would also be helpful if you could let us know your new email address with an email to membership@bacbr.org.uk so we can update the Mailchimp system used for the monthly Update mail out.
 Please don't hesitate to email membership@bacbr.org.uk if you have any questions you can't find an answer for and we will help you.

News from the CCCBR 
Central Council of Church Bell Ringers

The Central Council has appointed two employees: 

• Gemma Groom as the new Marketing and Admin Officer
• Josephine Leggett as the new Youth Development Officer

These two part-time, fixed-term appointments will focus on support for Ringing 2030 projects.  Gemma will focus primarily on projects around Marketing and Recruitment (including a national awareness campaign and the ringing survey), while Josephine will focus entirely on youth projects, including the new Youth Development Pathways project.    Both appointments will last one calendar year.
Read more here New appointments to the Council! – CCCBR

Some Useful Central Council Resources 

Risk Assessment Guidance  - Risk Assessment | Running a Tower
In Case of Emergency Notice - Emergency | Running a Tower
Recruitment and Retention - Recruitment and Retention – CCCBR
Notice Board toolkit -  Noticeboard Toolkit – CCCBR
You Tube Index - https://cccbr.org.uk/youtube-index
Images - Photos – CCCBR

.The Central Council Code for Ringing  - a reminder for everyone about this code for ringers - Code-for-Ringing-Edition-1-v1-285.pdf 

Do keep an eye on the Central Council website for wider ringing news, resources and helpful information!   https://cccbr.org.uk 
 

Linda Garton
President, BACBR 
president@bacbr.org.uk

Angela Blackburn
Ringing Master / Training Officer
trainingofficer@bacbr.org.uk

www.bacbr.org.uk

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