Bell ringing ropes grant 'a sound investment'

The future of bell ringing at a historic Derbyshire church has been boosted after a grant to help upgrade the belfry.

All Saints, in Sawley, is a Grade I listed building, with parts of it dating back to the 11th Century and the tower to the 15th Century.

Erewash Borough Council have agreed to a community grant of £3,500, which will go towards replacing all eight of its bell ropes.

Ringer Matt Micklewright said: "We're hugely grateful for the grant."

The new ropes, which are being commissioned from a specialist local maker, are part of a programme of refurbishments to the tower.

Micklewright said: "We've definitely got our money's worth from the old ones as they're covered in splices and areas we've repaired over the years.

"Electrical work is also planned, including an electric heater as it gets very cold up in the tower in the winter.

"We're actually hosting a meeting for all the ringers in Southern Derbyshire in January, so it'd definitely be nice to have everything in place by then."

Other work will include new carpets in the tower and a webcam so viewers can watch the bells as they are rung.

Harry Atkinson, who represents Sawley on the borough council, backed the bid.

He said: "I was only too happy to do so. You might describe it as the very definition of a sound investment."

The church's oldest bell was made by renowned local foundry maestro Henry Oldfield in 1591.

The five newest date back more than a century and were manufactured in Loughborough by Taylors Foundry – the last such maker still existing in the UK.

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