St Nicolas' Church Bellringing

October 2025 - Bells removed for re-tuning with anticipated return date Summer 2026.

From our article in Faith in Sussex:

The church’s bells have their own long story. Originally a ring of three in the 17th century, they were recast in 1893—melted down and augmented with additional metal to create the six bells we know today. (...)

In urgent need of retuning, the bells were carefully removed from the tower on 22 October 2025 by a dedicated team of volunteers working alongside Nicholson Engineering. It was a remarkable moment—the first time the bells had left the tower and seen daylight since 1893.

The project even attracted attention from ITV Meridian, featuring interviews with Chris from Nicholson Engineering, Ian the tower captain, and Ken, the churchwarden. Once lowered, the bells were loaded onto a Transit van, which just managed to navigate the narrow church lane, before beginning their journey to Dorset for restoration.

The bells are expected to return in early spring, newly retuned and refreshed after much-needed care.

This once-in-a-generation project has been generously supported by individual donors and the wider Pevensey parish community. Further contributions are still warmly welcomed, particularly to support improvements to the ringing chamber, including new ropes that will make bellringing more accessible and comfortable.

When the bells return, the team looks forward to welcoming visiting bands and new ringers alike. Anyone interested in learning to ring is encouraged to get in touch.

Updates on the project can be found on the parish website (www.pevenseyparish.org) or via the Facebook page, The Ancient Parish of Pevensey.

A final note of interest: the heaviest bell, the tenor, weighs 7 cwt 3 qtr 3 lb (approximately 395 kg). The bells also bear historic inscriptions—Sit nomen Domini benedictum appears on the treble, third, and fifth bells, while Te Deum Laudamus is inscribed on the tenor, second, and fourth.