The York Colleges Guild of Bellringers
York Students Teach School Pupils to Ring
Summer term is always exceptionally busy for members of York Colleges Guild with exams fitting around Dinner Day weekend and summer excursions, but this year an extra challenge loomed. Since Christmas a plan had been in the pipeline to teach pupils from Bootham School in York to ring. The Activities Co-ordinator of this Quaker school approached us to ask if we’d be interested in running a session for a mixture of their students once a week for eight weeks. Many e-mails later, the bells at St Olave’s were acquired for use every Wednesday afternoon, the risk assessments and CRB checks were carried out, and an army of tower and hand bell teachers (all current members of the student Guild) were ready to go.
As such an activity had never been offered by the school before, and as the hobby is unfortunately regarded as ‘uncool’ by many of the younger generation, it was decided that if we wanted kids to teach we’d have to go and find them! The Guild ringing master, Lilah, and I devised a presentation involving a true or false quiz aimed at dispelling common myths, used a model bell for a demonstration and emphasised the huge social and intellectual benefits the hobby can provide. After two impassioned presentations to year 7 and 8 music classes, we had eight boys sign up!
And so in late April we embarked on the first of the eight sessions which involved a guided tour of the Minster. After some moaning about the number of steps up the south west tower, the boys were all fascinated to see the carillon in action whilst walking over the top of the bells, before climbing up the see their teacher swing the clapper of Great Peter.
The remaining seven weeks were spent at St Olave’s for one hour every Wednesday. Time was tight but two or three boys were able to have individual handling tuition for 15 minutes while the rest were taught to ring tunes on the Guild’s hand bells in the adjacent room. The structure proved diverse and kept the students occupied and interested. We were also pleased to discover that one of the lads could already ring, having learnt at Tadcaster! So we were able to demonstrate Plain Hunt with him to the rest of his classmates. By the end of the seven weeks all pupils were able to handle a bell, with varying degrees of assistance, and all had developed good rhythm and timing in the hand bell tunes.
We hoped the course would act as an introduction to ringing by educating the boys as to what the hobby involves and hopefully by having fun along the way. However, we were delighted to discover that one of the lads wished to continue ringing and has expressed interest in joining the band at St Lawrence’s. Furthermore, the school would like to make the course permanent and we’ll run a similar arrangement this autumn term, possibly this time with sixth form students.
From the Guild’s point of view, the sessions were a lot of hard work but proved a very rewarding experience. Many of our student teachers were beginners themselves at the end of their first year of ringing but they all happily dedicated their time and enthusiasm to help teach hand and tower bells, learning a lot about the process along the way. Particular thanks must go to St Olave’s for allowing us to take over their church each week and to Sarah Allen at the school for instigating the sessions. Thanks too to Lilah for running all the sessions and scrambling around the belfry at all times of night fixing any broken stays!
Many may think university societies are all about drinking, ringing and more drinking. Whilst there’s no doubt this does occur (just occasionally!), many societies are also closely involved with their local church, the community and the kind of teaching we’ve been involved in. I think it’s an invaluable part of the university bell ringing experience and only helps to build teamwork and friendships. If you’re going to university this autumn, get involved, in whatever way you can, and put your society on the map!
Helen Green