Erewash Borough Council has approved a £3,500 community grant to help All Saints in Sawley, Derbyshire, replace all eight bell ropes as part of a tower refurbishment. Ringer Matt Micklewright said the old ropes had been repaired repeatedly.
The new ropes are being commissioned from a specialist local maker. Other planned tower work includes electrical work, an electric heater, new carpets and a webcam. Micklewright said the ringers would like everything in place for a Southern Derbyshire ringers’ meeting in January.
All Saints is a Grade I listed church, with parts dating to the 11th Century and its tower to the 15th. Its oldest bell was made in 1591; the five newest are more than a century old and were made by Taylors Foundry in Loughborough.
