All Saints’, Loughton is fortunate to have a ring of six bells, the oldest two of which date from around 1450. The bells are rung regularly for services on Sundays and practice on Monday evenings. However the last time any major work was carried out on the bells was in 1935.
In 2018 the bells were restored :
the two existing frames were replaced with a single frame of ‘lowside’ design.
the treble and tenor were replaced
All the bells were tuned
The bell fittings (clappers, bearings, rollers, sliders, etc) are all worn and will be replaced.
The cast-in crown staples were removed from the tenor, 5th and 4th bells, and the support holes, and the old indentations on the 5th and 4th bells, were filled in via specialist welding.
The old out-of-tune tenor was replaced with a new bell. The old tenor is now used as a clock bell
Also old poorly toned treble was replaced with a new bell.
The tenor, 5th and 4th bells are also clapper worn. The old indentations on the 5th and 4th bells will be filled in via specialist welding, and the bells one-eight turned.
This greatly improved the ringing circle, made all the bells easier to ring, and made access to the bells much easier and safer.
Following various inspections of the bells in 2014 it became clear that significant restoration work was needed to be carried out, as the majority of the fittings were very worn, and in addition the cast-in crown staples needed to be removed from the fourth, fifth and tenor bells to reduce the risk of cracking
There was also an opportunity to carry out much-needed improvements to the bells to make them easier to ring and also to make them sound much more musical. The bells are currently at two levels. The treble and the second are hung from two steel beams in an upper frame, whilst the third, fourth, fifth and tenor are all in line in a lower frame. This makes the treble and second bells difficult to ring, which is a problem for learners, who typically start learning to ring on the lighter bells. The existing ring is not very musical – the tenor bell is significantly out-of-tune and the treble is very poorly toned. Also access to the bells for maintenance is difficult and potentially dangerous, the rope circle is poor, and the ropes for the treble, second and third bells are too close to the edge of the ringing chamber.
The intention was therefore to rehang the bells all at the same level in a new frame with all new fittings, recast the poorly-toned treble, tune the second and third bells, and replace the out-of-tune tenor with a new bell. The old listed tenor would be used as a clock bell. The new frame would be designed so that two additional treble bells can be easily added in the future, to complete the full octave, subject to approval and the availability of additional funding.
It was estimated that this work would cost around £85,000 excluding VAT.
As a result of fundraising, grants, donations and a generous bequest, the total of £85,000 has now been reached. This will allow the restoration work on the bells to proceed.
A further £15,000 has also been raised to carry out other much needed work in the bell tower, including repairs to the roof, restoring the coat of arms in the ringing room, and repairs to the stone staircase up to the bells. It is also planned to replace the wooden screen with a glass screen – this will allow more light into the church, and provide more space for the ringers. Separate pledged funding has been raised for this work.
The aim of the project is to complete this work by May 2018 to commemorate the 800th anniversary of the institution of the first Rector of All Saints’. More details of the project can be found here.
The completion of this project will result in All Saints’ having a fine musical musical set of bells which are easy to ring and maintain, which will provide a real opportunity for All Saints’ to become a recognised ringing centre (a centre of good practice in the promotion and teaching of bell ringing).