Dear all, here are the sessions for the next few months:

July 8^th 2023, 10:30 – 10-bell practice at Rothwell

An opportunity for ringers of all abilities to have a go at ringing on higher numbers.  We regularly ring a range of methods from Grandsire and Little Bob up to Surprise Royal.

This practice is open to all – no need to register

July 8^th 2023, 14:30 – Bell Maintenance at Great Oakley

This is aimed at those who are interested in the mechanics of the bells and would like to learn a bit more, especially about how to keep the bells and fittings in good working order.  It will be a mainly practical session held up in the belfry and would suit new recruits as well as existing ringers, it will also cover looking after ropes and stays; learning how to change a rope and stay, how to adjust the length of a tail-end, and how to splice a broken rope.

There are spaces available on this course – please contact Simon Dixon if interested (master@pdg.org.uk)

July 8^th 2023, 18:30 – Intermediate 8-bell practice at Weedon Bec

This is for the in-between methods on 7&8 i.e., not Plain Bob or Grandsire, or Surprise Major, but methods such as Little Bob, Kent Treble Bob, Single Oxford Bob Triples.

This practice is open to all – no need to register in advance, just turn up with a £1 fee towards tower donations

August 12^th, 15:00 – Running a good practice at Spratton

This will be run as a workshop that encourages sharing from the participants.  It will be suitable for anyone who currently (or aspires to) run ringing sessions at tower or branch level and wants to make them as successful as possible.  Individual ringing ability is not an issue, although there will be an opportunity to try out new ideas.  It is hoped that some people who have many years of experience will also come to share ideas.

There is no limit to the number of places available but an idea of numbers will be useful for planning purposes – please contact Simon Dixon (master@pdg.org.uk) if you want to come to participate.

August 12^th, 18:30 – Stedman practice at Irthlingborough

This session is for all those who want to practice ringing either Stedman Triples or Stedman Doubles – plain courses or touches.

This practice is open to all – no need to register in advance, just turn up with a £1 fee towards tower donations

September 9^th, 10:30 – 10-bell practice at Daventry

An opportunity for ringers of all abilities to have a go at ringing on higher numbers.  We regularly ring a range of methods from Grandsire and Little Bob up to Surprise Royal.

This practice is open to all – no need to register

October 14^th, 10:30 – Grandsire – location tbd

This will cover the structure of the plain course of Grandsire (Doubles, Triples and above).  It will also look at how bobs and singles affect the working bells with hints on how to ring touches in the method.  The practical session will focus on ringing touches of doubles and triples and will take place at a location that is most convenient for those who sign up.  The course will be suitable for any ringer who can either ring plain bob or treble to different plain methods competently.

If interested please contact Simon Dixon (master@pdg.org.uk)

October 14^th, 18:30 – Plain Bob Practice at Desborough

This session is for all those who want to practice Plain Bob from Doubles up to Major – plain courses or touches.

This practice is open to all – no need to register in advance, just turn up with a £1 fee towards tower donations

November 11^th, 10:30 – 10-bell practice at Higham Ferrers

An opportunity for ringers of all abilities to have a go at ringing on higher numbers.  We regularly ring a range of methods from Grandsire and Little Bob up to Surprise Royal.  We will be ringing half-muffled and there will be a period of silence around 11am.

This practice is open to all – no need to register

November 11^th, 15:00 – Leading Up and Down in Peal at Grafton Underwood

This will cover the additional skills needed to allow a band to raise and lower the bells safely and tunefully.  It should be of particular interest to those who get called upon to carry out this task but are uncertain about how to make it work.

If interested please contact Simon Dixon (master@pdg.org.uk)

December 9^th, 15:00 – Ringing Up and Down in Peal at Isham

With advice and practice for either one of these activities, this would suit ringers who are members of bands that regularly lower and raise their bells but do not have enough ringers who can do so in peal. 

If interested please contact Simon Dixon (master@pdg.org.uk)

We ask that if anyone is interested in any of these sessions or have suggestions of their own to put forward, that they contact Simon Dixon (master@pdg.org.uk)  or Cathy Dixon (pro@pdg.org.uk) to let us know and we’ll be in touch with more details.  Please note that there will be a small fee of £3 per student for the training sessions to go towards a tower donation, and a request for £1 from each ringer at one of the open practice sessions.