Issue date: 20/09/2019
The Derby City Centre Ringers are committed to providing a safe environment in the tower at St Peter's, Derby. These guidelines are for anyone who is in charge of any ringing taking place.
This information is available as a booklet in the tower, and can be downloaded as an A5 PDF file.
You must follow the tower safeguarding procedures. These can be viewed on our website and copies are available on the rack near the ringing room door. Our procedures allow other groups to use their own safeguarding procedures if agreed in advance.
You must keep an attendance record and give a copy of this to the tower captain/secretary.
You must have access to a mobile phone while in the tower.
You are responsible for controlling access to the church unless another event is taking place in the building and the organiser of that event takes responsibility for controlling access.
Do not leave the church doors unlocked.
Do not let anyone who is not attending your event into the church for any reason. If they have permission to be in the church then they will have their own access arrangements.
Do not share the door or alarm codes with anyone else.
Details of emergency exit routes are on the ringing room door.
The door at the bottom of the tower stairs must be left open while the tower is occupied.
Ensure that people take their time when using the stairs, and mind their heads when leaving the ringing room or bell chamber.
There are manually operated battery-powered lights available in the window alcoves on the stairs, in case of power failure,
Details of emergency exit routes are on the ringing room door.
Non-ringing visitors must be given a copy of the visitor’s safety notice. These are stored in the rack near the ringing room door.
The clock hammers are currently out of use and must be left off.
Give a warning before lowering the rope spider and check that no-one is underneath it. Do not leave the spider lowered for longer than necessary.
There are separate instructions for setting up and using the simulator.Trailing wires must be covered if using the workstations. Mats are stored in the clock cabinet, on the right hand side.
Check that the bells are down before ringing up.
Keep the ringing room door closed during ringing.
Learners must be supervised by competent ringers. Do not allow anyone else inside the rope circle during ringing.
Do not allow anyone who is not ringing to distract the ringers.
Stop the ringing if a ringer is struggling to control their bell.
Adjust ropes to safe lengths and not have large loops between tucks.
Ringing boxes are available. These must be correctly placed and users must not have their feet over the edge of a box. Move boxes out of the way immediately after use.
If the ringing room is overcrowded then the number of people in the room must be restricted.
Hot drinks may only be made or consumed in the ringing room while the bells are not being rung and people are seated.
In the event of an electrical fault, circuit breakers are located in the church, at the west end of the south aisle.
Electric fans and heaters are available. These must be turned off after use, except for the convector heater which may be left on the timeswitch during cold weather.
The ringing room windows may be opened for ventilation. Use the ladder stored near the door to reach the upper window. Hook the angled wooden blocks on the ladder over the window ledge to prevent slipping. Return the ladder to its storage place immediately after use.
This section is intended to cover visits to the bell chamber for the purposes of demonstrating a ringing bell, to view the bells, or for minor work such as replacing a broken rope, fitting silencers or adjusting muffles. Separate guidelines are available for anyone organising bell maintenance work.
The bell chamber door must be kept locked during ringing. The bell chamber must only be accessed with authorisation from the tower captain/secretary. A key for the bell chamber padlock is kept in the keysafe mounted near the rope spider cord hook. Return the key to the keysafe after use. Take at least one torch in case of power failure. There are some on the side of the clock cabinet near the door. There are also battery powered work lights and torches stored under the bell frame, near the door.
If no-one will be left in the ringing room, put the ropes on the spider, and hook the notice warning that there are people in the bell chamber on the ropes. The notice is stored by the rope spider cord hook. If people will be in the ringing room, then they must be instructed not to touch the ropes except under instruction from the person in charge of those in the bell chamber. The circumstances under which this might happen and a suitable signalling system are to be agreed between that person and the person who will be in charge in the ringing room before anyone goes into the bell chamber.
Use bell 3 for any demonstration of a bell being rung. Bell 4 must be down before anyone enters the bell chamber. An experienced ringer must be the first person in the bell chamber, the last to leave, and must stay between the visitors and bell 3 at all times. If the bell is not silenced then ear plugs must be used. These are kept in the ringing room, in the lower cupboard in the old clock weight cabinet, and in the bell chamber, in the storage container under the bell frame near the door. No more than 5 visitors may be in the bell chamber for the demonstration. The person ringing the bell must be an experienced ringer with a high degree of bell control.
To carry out a visual inspection which does not require anyone to go on or under the bell frame, then bells 3 and 4 must be down before entering the bell chamber. All bells must be down before going on or under the bell frame.
Do not climb the wall-mounted ladder higher than is necessary to get on to the bell frame, unless required to make an emergency exit.
Leave bells down unless it has been agreed with the tower captain/secretary that they can be left up. If bells are left up then hook the warning notice on the ropes. The notice is stored by the rope spider cord hook. Also fit the spring-loaded warning barrier across the tower stairs. This is stored behind the door at the bottom of the stairs.
Leave the ropes on the spider (or in the rope dryer if you have been asked to use that).
Switch fans and heaters off unless on a timeswitch, e.g. the rope dryer.
Return any equipment that you have used to its proper storage space.
Close all windows. In warm weather a small ventilation gap (about 2cm) may be left on the lower windows.
Lock the doors to the tower stairs, ringing room and bell chamber. Be certain that you do not lock anyone in the tower.
If you are the last people in the church, ensure that the church is locked and the alarm is set. Be certain that you do not lock anyone in the building.
Advise the tower captain/secretary if there are health & safety or safeguarding issues that need to be addressed, or any equipment needs to be repaired/replaced.
Return the keys in line with any arrangements that have been agreed.
First aid kits and bottled water are available in the ringing room, on the shelves in the old clock weight cabinet, and in the bell chamber, under the bell frame near the door. Let the tower captain/secretary know if you use anything that needs to be replaced, or if an incident needs to be recorded in the church accident book.
There is a fire extinguisher near the ringing chamber door.
The ringing room has an emergency light which will come on if there is a power failure. There are also torches and other battery-powered lights stored on the clock case near the ringing room door, under the bell frame near the bell chamber door, and in the bell chamber and in the window alcoves on the stairs.
If you call the emergency services, advise them that the church postcode is DE1 1SN, or that the ‘What 3 Words’ reference is FULL NOISY HIGHS. If assistance is needed to remove a casualty from the tower, advise them that a ‘Hazardous Area Response Team’ might be required.
Details of emergency exit routes are on the ringing room door.