Updates from the Guild Secretary

2026 Ringing Census happening soon! 

From 16 to 22 November 2026, bellringers across the country are invited to take part in Census Week and help build a picture of ringing today. Whether you ring every week, join in occasionally, or are just beginning your ringing journey, your experience is part of the story.

During Census Week, towers are encouraged to record the ringing that takes place and invite ringers to share their own experiences. The Individual and Tower Census questionnaires will be open from 23 November to 6 December, giving everyone time to submit their responses after the week itself.

Please complete the individual questionnaire and help make sure that a tower questionnaire is completed for your tower. The two questionnaires provide different perspectives: your individual response tells us about your ringing, while the tower response helps record what happened locally during Census Week.

Taking part is voluntary, but every response helps create a fuller and more accurate picture of ringing across the country. The information gathered will help us understand the people and towers that make up our ringing community and support the future development of ringing.

Find out more at cccbr.org.uk/census.

Obituary: Zoe Sutton, St Mary's, Acton

We are sad to announce the death of Zoe Sutton of St Mary's, Acton. Zoe was a ringer at Acton for over 40 years. Her main priority during her ringing years was to make sure that the bells at Acton were rung for Sunday services and for other notable events.  She managed to achieve this ambition and was a regular ringer at Acton until she was 90. Her husband, Fred, was also a ringer at Acton and rang many peals with others fro m the South Cheshire Branch until his death in 1990. Members of the Sutton family have rung the bells at Acton St Mary's for over a hundred years. Her daughter, Carole Sturgess, is a current member of the Acton band and intends to carry on the Sutton ringing tradition into the future.

2026 Westley Award for Belfry Maintenance and Improvement 

The Ringing 2030 Environments Workgroup of the Central Council of Church Bell Ringers is launching the 2026 award for people who have recently become involved in belfry maintenance and improvement, developing their own skills and helping others to do so.

The award will be presented at the CCCBR AGM in Rugby in September 2026. The winner will receive £100, kindly donated by Westley Group, and a certificate. Details of the award, and how to enter, can be found on the Council's website here: https://cccbr.org.uk/about/workgroups/ringing-2030-environments/westley-award-2026/ 

University Website Launched 

The Young Ringers for Ringing 2030 have launched the new University Ringing website. https://universityringing.org/. You can find the press release about it here

https://cccbr.org.uk/2026/02/13/the-new-universityringing-org-website-is-live/

Please can you make your members aware of this site.  Especially any young ringers who are considering going to university this year. Also, if there is a university society in your area not affiliated to The Council, can you let them know about the site.

Cheshire/North Staffs Young Ringers 

Every month, young ringers from across Cheshire and North Staffs meet to ring together. We meet on the third Sunday of the month and visit different towers across the region. 

In 2025, we rang as far south as Stafford and Haughton, and as far north-west as Neston in the Wirral. We rang in between, including at Nantwich, Madeley, Waverton and Stoke Minster. We enjoyed ringing on the little bells at Woodlands, on the anticlockwise ring at Seighford, and on twelve at Stafford, Newcastle and Chester Cathedral. We also entered a team into the RWNYC 2025.

We welcome all bell ringers aged under-30, under-18 and under-11. Whether you can conduct spliced, or just about handle a bell, or any standard in between, you will be most welcome. 

Please see the NSACR website (https://nsacr.org.uk) for the most up-to-date information, and to find out where we’re ringing this month. If you are under-18 and coming for the first time, you will need to bring a consent form filled out by your parent/guardian for safeguarding. You can find that consent form here. 

Towers have been confirmed for the next monthly youth practice (Note that there are two meetings in November):

Sunday 15th November 2026 - Macclesfield

•       1-2pm handbells in ringing room at St Michael & All Angels, Macclesfield (SK10 1DY)

•       2-3:15pm tower bells at St Michael & All Angels, Macclesfield 

•       3:30-5pm tower bells at Christ Church, Macclesfield (SK11 6EG)

•       5:30-6:30pm quarter peal attempt at All Saints St Peter’s, Congleton (CW12 4AB)

Sunday 29th November 2026 - Stafford

•       12-1pm quarter peal at the Collegiate Church of St Mary, Stafford (ST16 2AP)

•       1-2:30pm handbells in the ringing room at the Collegiate Church of St Mary, Stafford 

•       2:30-4:30pm tower bells at the Collegiate Church of St Mary, Stafford

•       5-6pm general ringing at St Lawrence, Gnosall (ST20 0DD)

•       6pm quarter peal attempt at St Lawrence, Gnosall

For dates in December and beyond, please refer to this document or the website. Ringing teachers, tower captains and parents can contact us at  ag-youngringers1@nsacr.org.uk with any questions. 

We look forward to ringing with you! 

A View of Towers in the Guild