The bells of St Laurence church in Alvechurch, Worcestershire date from 1711 and have been ringing across the village for nearly 300 years. There are eight bells ranging in weight from 4 to 12 hundredweight (200 to 600 kg) and the ringers of St Laurence ring them in the traditional English pattern of Change Ringing.

Running Total June 9th 2009

The bells have survived three centuries but are showing signs of wear and we need to raise around £60,000 to have them repaired and refurbished. The work is expensive because we have to retain as much of the eighteenth century structure as we can. These pages describe the problems we are facing, the work that we need to do, and the progress we've made towards raising the money.

Latest News

We have had a report back from English Heritage after their dendrochronology tests of the timber in the tower. The main beams date from 1670 and we are going to have to retain them in our new installation. They have also asked us to retain as much of the existing floor boarding as possible. The actual framework supporting the bells is however late Victorian and of no particular merit so we can replace that with a stronger and lighter set of cast iron frames mounted on steel girders that will take the weight off of the old beams.

The only problem that arises from English Heritage's decision is that our new steel girders will have to be fitted above the existing woodwork and this could lift the bells higher in the tower. If the bells are too high then they won't line up with the windows in the tower and the sound will be deflected down into the churchyard rather than out over the village. We're discussing possible designs with the bell hangers so that we can keep the bells as close as possible to their current height.

Future Events

We have a full season of events planned for the next 12 months. More details will be posted here and around the village closer to the date.

• July 11th 2009 - Railway Exhibition. We've been given a stall at this exhibition in the Ark and will be running a Tombola and Book Stall.
• September 25th 2009 - Quiz Night and Supper.
• December 12th 2009 - Christmas Coffee Morning.

Donations

We are offering our supporters the chance to sponsor a bell. You can read details on our sponsorship page or download our brochure with an application form.

Visit our donations page and help us towards our target. You can use your credit card on-line or print out a GiftAid form.

The Bell Fund is raising money on behalf of St Laurence Church. We are working under the following Bell Fund Terms of Reference.

Email us and help with the St Laurence Bell Fund!