THE ARRIVAL of new church bells at Elmley Castle Church was welcomed by villagers, school children, flowers and song this week.
Restored following a grant of almost £120,000 from The National Lottery Heritage Fund, they were laid out in front of the church doors and were blessed by the Rev Katryn Leclezio.
The project to replace the bells began in 2010 with one new bell cast in 2011. The National Lottery Heritage Fund grant, along with other donations and fundraising in the parish, has enabled two more new bells to be cast.
Katryn said: “This is a very special occasion for the church and we’re delighted that the school and the wider village were involved before the bells were taken back up into the bell tower.
“We have six bells able to be rung at Elmley Castle church. Three of these have been replaced with new bells which are much lighter and therefore easier to ring.
“They should also be much more tuneful than the old ones, which came from other churches and were not necessarily the right note.”
As tradition dictates, flowers were used to decorate bells before they were hung by those who came out to welcome the bells back to church.
The children from Elmley Castle CofE First School also helped to bless the bells with holy water and singing.
Project manager and tower captain, Steve Bowley, said: “This has been a very exciting project, and we are delighted to finally have the bells returning to church.
“Installation will take about three days and we are looking forward to being able to ring them at events coming up.
“Bell ringing is both physically and mentally challenging and is a great way of keeping fit and healthy as well as a very social hobby.
“Our new lighter bells will make ringing them more accessible and I hope that more people will be inspired to come and join us.
“We owe it to future generations to make sure that this ancient craft doesn’t die out.”
