Clopton Church - Church of St Mary the Virgin

Bell Tower Appeal

The tower of Clopton Church was badly damaged many years ago, due to the movement of the oak bell-frame when the bells were rung, and regular ringing had to cease to prevent further damage.

There are six bells in the tower. The tenor, fifth, fourth, second and treble date from 1788, and the third from 1880. They weigh from 5cwt to 12 cwt.

In 2009 the tower was repaired at a cost of £90,000, but the old oak bell-frame could not be re-used as this would, once again, have caused damage to the tower. The oak bell-frame had to be kept in place, however, because of its historic interest, so a new metal frame, sited lower in the tower, was needed before the bells could be rung once more.

To this end, the church had to raise £97,000, through a Heritage Grant and local fund-raising, to install a new bell frame and develop a Heritage Group at the church.

The work to dismantle the old bell frame and remove the bells was undertaken in February 2013 by volunteers. The bells were taken away to be retuned and mended. The bell frame was rebuilt during the hot summer weather of 2013 with help from volunteers from the village. On 6 September 2013 the bells were reinstalled and rung for the first time on 8 September at a service of thanksgiving.

The creation of a Heritage Group formed part of the Heritage Grant application and is run by a team of volunteers who research, collect and collate information about Clopton village, past and present.  New members are always welcome.  There is a permanent exhibition of local information and records, which are open to the public in the church.   Further information can be found on the Clopton Church website: http://www.cloptonchurch.org.uk