The six bells at St Mary’s Church were installed in a new frame and retuned to a high standard by John Taylor & Co in 1932. Because three of the bells were cast in 1623, and the other three in 1821, 1932 and 2000, the peculiarities of the bell mechanics make it more difficult than it should be to ring all six bells suantly. It also makes the raising of the bells with the clappers on the right side very difficult.
Despite that, since 1981 they have been regularly rung for weekly practices and services. 114 people have been taught to ring from this and surrounding villages and another 50 had a good try including all year six at Badby School in 2013-5. Over 400 different people have rung the bells in the last 40 years, either regularly or for special visits.
Prompted by the 400th birthday of the three oldest bells (they are older than the tower!) and the finding of some corrosion in the foundation beams and frame, professional opinions were sought and the best solution was chosen.
Nicholson Engineering Ltd of Bridport, Dorset, with site foreman Neil leading a team of volunteers, will remove the bells, take them away to deal with incipient cracks found in the crown of the 3rd bell, and come back to re-hang all the bells on new specially designed headstocks with new clapper assemblies so that they readily ring as a coherent ring of six bells.
The last practice before the bells come out was held on Wednesday (11 June) evening and ended with ‘diminishing rounds’ followed by each bell being swung ‘down’ one at a time. There is no service on Sunday so that was the last ringing.
The next effect will be the loss of the church clock quarter chimes, no ringing to announce services or weddings and quieter Wednesday evenings until September!
The schedule is expected to be:
| Commence | Work | Duration |
| 14/5/2025 | Site meeting with all concerned | Half day |
| 18/6/2025 | Remove some masonry from tower doorway | Day |
| 16/6/2025 | Dismantle bells and lower bells to tower floor | Approx 3 days |
| 19/6/2025 | Bells to be loaded on lorry to go to workshops | Morning |
| 21/7/2025 | Upgrade tower lighting | Approx 2 days |
| 28/7/2025 | Repair corrosion in bell frame, de-rust & paint | To confirm |
| 1/9/2025 | Install bells & restore masonry at doorway | 5 – 7 days |
We hope to put a CCTV monitor in the church so that anyone interested can see work in progress in the belfry.
There will be progress reports and photos published on the parish website badby-pc.gov.uk – subscribe now to get notifications!