Goodness me, what a hot few days. Having a ground floor ringing chamber has been a lovely bonus as it’s been a lot cooler than anywhere else, but I hope everyone has managed to stay well and safe during ringing activities. As we started a quarter peal on Wednesday afternoon I did think this is the definition of madness!
It has been a busy month, with the Guild AGM and 8 bell striking competition taking place, Bell Sunday and preparation for the Guild Striking Competitions, as well as a variety of Branch activities. There are reports of many of these activities on the Guild Website.
Two of our Branches have significant anniversaries this year. The Devizes branch started celebrating 125 years on 3rd January 2026 and have activities taking place throughout the year, including keeping a record of any firsts that are achieved by their members. The East Dorset Branch is celebrating 125 years on 3rd June with a call for members to ring a quarter peal on the day to celebrate. I look forward to hearing more about these celebrations as they happen. The Guild will be celebrating 150 years in 2032, and planning will soon be starting for events to celebrate that occasion, so any ideas of what you would like us to do are most welcome.
We had a lovely day for the Guild AGM at Calne on 9th May, and a good representation of members from across our Branches. Thank you to everyone who made the day such a success, it is a lot of hard work but very much appreciated. The meeting business was straightforward, with officers report accepted, Ian Mozley being made a Vice President, and Julian Ferrar an HLM. We presented 50, 60, 70 and 80 year membership certificates and it was proposed from the floor that the Education Grant fund was increased to £3000 with £1000 allocated to residential course grants; here there is a slight change, as a grant will be up to £100 and for up to 10 members of the Guild.
I am delighted to welcome back to the executive team Julian Newman, who was Report Editor until 2019 and has volunteered to take on the Secretary role as Kathryn Tyson steps down for a well earned rest. David Hacker has volunteered to be his assistant secretary, thank you to them both. Also a warm welcome to Julia Russell who has taken on the Training Officer role, having been very effective and efficient as the Training Officer and Secretary for the Devizes branch for several years. As Ben Duke also stood down at the AGM, we still need a Report Editor; this is is a post that is active from January to April, requesting reports from officers, liaising with Branch Secretaries to confirm entries are correct, compiling the report and liaising with the printers. The rest of the year is free.
The Guild 8 Bell Striking Competition was held on the morning of the AGM at Bishops Cannings with 4 teams taking part. The West Dorset band were the winners for the third time in a row, many congratulations to them. They are clearly establishing themselves as the team to beat as they are also the current holders of the 6 bell trophy. If you would like to have a go at winning a trophy for your branch, come along to the 6 bell competitions on 13th June in the Dorchester Branch and join the call change or 6 bell method competitions. Details are on the website here and the final date for entries is 5th June.
The Novice competition follows swiftly, being held at Chiseldon in the Marlborough Branch on 11th July, and we are aiming to make it a fun and social day as it was last year, so again please do take part if you can.
Meanwhile stay cool!
Vicki
