| The
Parish Church of St James St. James's Road, Hampton Hill, TW12 1DQ (Parish Office 020 8941 6003) |
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| RUNNING
THE CHURCH |
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At St. James's the bells are rung from 09.15 to 09.30 every Sunday before Parish or All-age Communion. There is a pattern to this which has been followed at St. James’s for at least twenty years; tunes for the first ten minutes, then a single bell for three minutes to call the congregation to church, and finally rapid ringing for the last two minutes (to indicate that you should hurry?). If you have never noticed this, listen next Sunday. Most people marrying at St. James's request bells, which are rung as they leave the church after the ceremony. The bells are also rung at New Year; slow, mournful ringing as the old year dies followed by joyful tunes after midnight to welcome the new year. We are occasionally asked to ring on other occasions; for wedding anniversaries, special birthdays, or sometimes at funerals to celebrate the life of the deceased.
As our bells do not swing, they can all be rung by one ringer. There are currently ten ringers, with one or two being needed each time. Although the bells are rung by only one person at a time, we usually have two ringers 'on duty' on each occasion. Each rings for a couple of minutes and then passes to the other, the changeover should not he noticeable to those listening! Ringing is fun and new ringers are always welcome. Anyone from the age of about eleven can learn to ring. It takes several hours to learn, but once trained the commitment is only fifteen minutes about once a month with our current numbers. See contacts below. Four young people became sufficiently competent to help with the Sunday ringing of the bells in 2010 after attending Saturday practice sessions very regularly. During our open days, visitors, including children, are encouraged to have a go at ringing the bells. |
| Further Information |
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Contact Susan
Horner on 020 8979 9380 |
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| Latest Bellringing APCM Report | |
| Associated pages on this website: Bell Tower |
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