Haywards Heath, St Wilfrid

10 tubular bells in C#. 1 service bell, 5cwt (approx) in F. 'Kleinwort' bell, 28-3-11cwt in D.

The ten tubular bells, cast by Harrington, Latham & Co in 1888 are hung in the west corner of the belfry. They are hung in a frame of timber construction, likely also by Harrington, Latham & Co of the same year, although no marks on the frame itself identify its maker. 9 of the 10 tubular bells have a diameter of 3'', with the tenor tube being 3.5''. The hour bell (also known as the Bourdon & 'Kleinwort Bell' was cast in 1924 by Mears & Stainbank and is hung dead from a dead-stock within its steel frame. It is used by the clock to strike the hour and can also be manually tolled. The bell weighs 28-3-11cwt and sounds the note of 'D'. The service bell was cast in 1864 by John Warner & Sons. It is hung for full circle ringing and is chimed prior to services, when the tubular bells are not being rung. It is rung from the ground floor, but can also be rung from the clock chamber. From the ground floor, there are two ropes. The rope with a short sally is attached to the service bell, and is used to chime prior to services. The second rope, with a full-sized sally, is used to toll the bourdon bell. Due to the very long unguided draft, full circle ringing of the service bell from the ground floor is not advised. The ten tubular bells are rung via an Ellacombe frame in the clock chamber. There is also a rope in the clock chamber to safely ring the service bell full circle, if desired. The tubular bells are rung prior to the main Sunday service as well as for weddings and other occasions. The service bell is chimed prior to services when the tubular bells are not being rung. The hour/bourdon/'Kleinwort bell' is struck on the hour by the clock, and is manually tolled for funerals and other occasions. Sunday service chiming is from 09:15 to 09:30 prior to the main Sunday service, by a team of chimers.

In March 2020, just before the first COVID-19 lockdown, all the bells were restored and overhauled. The ten Harrington, Latham & Co tubular bells were removed from the tower, two of the tubular bells were cracked and were weld repaired by Soundweld, limited tuning was undertaken, and the frame and sittings were completely stripped and partially rebuilt and overhauled. The service bell was quarter turned, the crown staple was removed, new gudgeons were fitted, ball bearings were fitted, a new clapper and independent staple were made and fitted and the bell was rehung on its existing headstock. The Kleinwort Bell was fitted with a new clapper and crown staple. The new clapper having a chiming lever fixed to its shaft as previously. The ten tubular bells, rung via the Ellacombe frame, were fitted with new ropes, complete with red/white/blue sallies!

The Kleinwort Bell has been tolled on a number of occasions recently: 

• Thursday 18th April 2019 at 7pm in solidarity with France after the fire at Notre Dame Cathedral. One of the people to toll the bell on this date was Sir Richard Kleinwort Bt DL.

• Friday 9th September 2022 for 1 hour to mark the death of Queen Elizabeth II. 

• Monday 19th September 2022 at 10am for 1 hour prior to the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II.

The Tubular bells were rung on Saturday 6th May 2024 to mark the Coronation of King Charles III & Queen Camilla.

Photos courtesy of OEPW's personal archive & St Wilfrid's Church Facebook page.