What a busy last month we have had at Harby!

Taylor’s arrived on 1^st September to start the installation work, and after much juggling of time off, had 2 able-bodied helpers to man the 3-week timetable.

The added frame side, and fixtures and fittings were all raised quickly, and enabled a day off, pending delivery of the bells on Thursday 4^th September.

That day came, and the Haulier’s lorry was processed through the village by our vicar, the Rev’d Paul Towns. Despite the inclement weather, people came out to see the lorry and bells pass by. The bells were quickly unloaded, and placed in the middle aisle of the church in readiness for a celebration service that evening.

Almost 70 people attended the service, led by Rev’d Paul, and assisted by the Vale Choir, and it was a great community event bringing people together to see the bells, learn a bit about their history, and to socialise with one another over a glass of wine and light refreshments. It was also good to be able to show our new pull up banners to highlight the scope of our project, and for potential recruits to understand about bells and bellringing.

The following morning, Harby School held their assembly in Church, and the children were able to see the bells, and also learn about their history.

The rest of the day saw all 6 bells raised into their pits, which was much quicker than anticipated.

The following two weeks were spent installing the fixtures and fittings, sorting the setting depths of each bell, and adjusting the striking, and installing the rope guides. Then the ropes were installed, but due to an administrative error, we needed to source a spare set at short notice. Thankfully a few frantic messages secured a set from Loughborough Parish (thanks Sally!) so the bells could be tested out.

They had their first ring together Wednesday 17^th September, and what an improvement on the old 5! They certainly handle much better, and sound very good indeed. The only comment is that they are quite loud, so we will look to block up the hole in the ceiling which may help.

The following week saw the installation of the training bells, which to the untrained eye feel just like a ‘normal’ bell.

It will take a little time for us to kit out the ringing centre with laptops/screens/cameras, but hopefully it won’t be too long before we can host training events.

Our practices resume on Thursdays at 7:30, and all will be welcome to come and try out our new bells. So we are not inundated, it would be helpful if you can let Jonathan know (harbybells@gmail.com) so we can take advantage of the extra help for our band.

I would like to extend my thanks to everyone who has helped bring this project to fruition, from assisting with grant application, to spending a day (or more) helping with the installation. I hope it will all have been worthwhile!

Jonathan Dickenson
Tower Captain, Harby.