I recently had the opportunity to ring in the Tewkesbury Shield, on the 3rd of May, for the Leicester band. There were 9 teams in total and it was lovely to listen to every bands ringing throughout the day.

When we arrived in the morning, bacon and sausage cobs were available, as well as tea and coffee. It was lovely being able to chat among friends at this time and see some new faces. The draw was held in the hall opposite to the Abbey and Leicester were drawn first, so we made our way to the bottom door to start the climb. On our way up to the bell tower, we had to walk through the rafters, which was a nice way to let our legs have a rest before continuing to walk up another great number of steps. You also have to walk past the old ringing room which is in the centre of the tower. Many photographs were taken as it was such an interesting room, it felt very historic.

Once all of our band arrived up the bell tower, it was time to practice. Each team had 5 minutes to practice before having to start their test piece, which was a full course of Cambridge Royal. As a band, we practiced getting our pull off right and rang as much of the Cambridge as we had time for. Once the practice time was over we began our test piece. It was such a great experience to ring in my first competition, as well as being able to share this experience with another young ringer who was also taking part in her first competition. In the Leicester band we had 3 ringers who were 20 and under, me being one of them. It feels good that the younger generation are coming through and that we can share these experiences with our friends. Our test piece went smoothly and there were no major mishaps. Once we had finished ringing, it was time to go back down so that the next team could start. When we got to the bottom, each team had their photographs taken on the steps outside.

For the rest of the afternoon it was nice to be able to listen to the other teams ring, chat with friends and catch up with some familiar faces. When it came to the results time the teams gathered back in the hall to listen to our judge, Simon Edwards. Simon was a fantastic judge and gave great feedback to all of the teams, making sure that he gave constructive feedback so each team knew what they had done well and how they could improve. Overall, Leicester came 6th out of 9, with Birmingham winning the competition.

It was a lovely day out to spend with friends and family and again, such a brilliant opportunity and experience. I am already looking forward to next year!

Kiera Boylan