The bells are rung from 9.15 to 9.30 every Sunday before Parish Communion. There is a pattern to this which has been followed at St. James’s for at least 20 years; tunes for the first 10 minutes, then a single bell for 3 minutes to call the congregation to church, and finally rapid ringing for the last 2 minutes (to indicate that you should hurry?). If you have never noticed this, listen next Sunday.

Most people marrying at St. James’ 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.

Although a few people still believe that our bells can be switched on to ring automatically, this is not true! Only the chimes every quarter operate mechanically; all other ringing has to be done by real people. 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 I5 minutes about once a month with our current numbers. See contacts below.

During our open days, visitors, including children, are encouraged to have a go at ringing the bells.