The Friends group was launched in June 2023 with the primary aim of raising funds to restore bell ringing to Hindringham.
St Martin’s is a grade 1 listed church on the Heritage At Risk register and currently has 5 bells which are in a very sad state of repair with cracks and even a chunk missing from one of them. Our aim is to introduce 6 new, lighter bells and hear bells ringing out from Hindringham again for the first time in over 100 years.
The tower is very tall and fairly narrow and can be seen from many miles away. It is in the centre of the village and illuminated at night. There are significant cracks at each corner of the tower and the stairs are so dangerous that the clock, donated by the village for Queen Victoria’s jubilee in 1897 can no longer be serviced as it is too risky to ascend.
The PCC are responsible for the maintenance of the church but the Friends wanted to set up a totally independent group and have a project for the village. The aim is to hold social events and have fun along the way.
On setting up the group we researched articles in PCC News and knew that there was much help available. We spoke to local Friends groups, particularly Philip Morter from Brisley, and learned from their successes and guidance. The most important bit of advice was, don’t rush things, get all the systems in place first – and most wisely, get a bank account in time for the launch. We then advertised a public AGM and appointed a few key people, amongst them our chair, Serena Jamieson.
We have a marvellous little, courtesy of Chris Richmond which can be found on Youtube. It shows the current state of the tower and bells or search Chris Richmond, Hindringham tower bells.
The launch evening was a tremendous success with over 60 people enjoying wine and canapés and hearing about our ambition. Most people signed up to be a Friend on the night and we are approaching 1% of our target funds already. Future plans include sending out regular Newsletters, setting up a website and organising an autumn fundraising event.
If you would like to become a Friend of Hindringham Church for £10 per household / year and follow our progress, or make a donation you can do that by emailing friendsofhindringhamchurch@gmail.com.
Have you ever wanted to know more about having a Friends group for your church?
Take a look at this recorded webinar for key information to help you.
You may have heard about Friends groups but perhaps have not considered one for your church. There is one major benefit to having a Friends group – the funds that are raised for the maintenance of the fabric and churchyard. Where there is a good active Friends group, the church building is almost always in good order!
In this recorded workshop Anastasia Moskvina goes through some key points and questions about how to set up a Friends group and why your church could benefit from having one. Watch it here.