The Belfry Repair Fund (BRF) is the charitable part of the Association to help church towers carry out restoration work on their bells by giving out grants as well as providing information and advice to keep bells in good working order.  The BRF provides grants for or towards the cost of bells, their fittings or for their repairs, or for structural, mechanical or sound control work.

The first grant was made in 1953 with a payment of £10 to Walton on Thames. Since then, the fund has given a total of 95 grants, totaling over £125,000, to towers in all parts of the Association. 2005 was a ground breaking year when a total of £23,300 was paid out to 6 towers, and this included a record grant of £15,000 to St Mary’s Beddington towards the rehanging of their ring of 10 bells.

The BRF Committee are pleased to receive grant applications towards any suitable project, no matter the size. If you would like more information about the grant application process, or to obtain other financial and fund raising information, please contact brfsectreas [at] surreybellringers [dot] org [dot] uk (Robin Leale).

Click here to download a copy of the grant application form.

The BRF committee can provide advice on general aspects of bell and tower maintenance. If you have any questions, please contact the BRF Chairman, brfchairman [at] surreybellringers [dot] org [dot] uk (Rosemary Lilley).

Fund Raising

Funds are raised for the BRF in various different ways, including:

• One off and regular donations from Towers and PCCs;
• Collections at District and General meetings;
• Individual donations and bequests.  Recently this has included a generous donation from Michael Uphill representing the proceeds from his recently published book ‘Tales from the London County Crypt’;
• Sales from clothing, mugs and other items. The Association produces a range of clothing with an embroidered logo of the Surrey Association. Garments include sweatshirts, polo shirts, T-shirts, rugby shirts and fleece. Go to the clothing page for more information and to obtain and order form.
• The Brockham Bonfire in recognition of the help we provide during the event;
• The Numbers Club. The Numbers Club has grown over the years to be a very successful monthly prize draw. It typically boosts the BRF funds by around £500 a year. This club is open to all members of the Association and of all the money collected, 55% is paid out in prizes and 45% goes to the BRF. If you are interested in taking part, why not download an application form.

Robin is the point of contact if you would like to make a donation to the BR.

As a registered charity, we are able to accept Gift Aided donations and claim tax back from the Inland Revenue.

Current Projects

Here are details of some of the projects we are currently supporting.

• Merton, St John the Divine - New installation of 8 bells: A new ring of 8 bells is planned to mark the 100th anniversary of the dedication of the church in 2013. The church has already acquired three bells from the Keltek Trust, and the BRF has promised a grant of £20,000 towards the total cost of about £150,000.
• Burstow, St Bartholomew – Bell frame strengthening: As part of a larger project involving the tower structure, the bell frame will be strengthened. An application form has been received and the grant is being considered by the BRF.
• Capel, St John the Baptist – General Repairs: The work will include an overhaul of the fixtures and fittings in the belfry, together with the repair of some mechanical faults. An application form has been received and the grant is being considered by the BRF.
• Nutfield – Sound Control: The installation of sound control is being considered.

Recently Completed Projects

The BRF is pleased to support any project that meets its criteria however big or small. Here are some of the recent projects that we have been able to give grants to:

• Banstead, All Saints: General repairs on Banstead bells have been completed, towards which the BRF has made a grant of £2000.
• Walton-on-Thames, St Mary’s: The 8 bells have been re-tuned and rehung on new headstocks in a new frame at a cost in the region of £70,000. We helped by making a grant of £6000. The bells were rededicated in June 2011.
• Ewell, St Mary’s: We have made a grant of £250 towards some recently completed refurbishment of the bells.
• Caterham, St John's: We contributed £250 towards  the cost of installing sound control, and in a separate project another £300 towards the refurbishment of the clappers.
• Stoke d’Abernon, St Mary’s: We made a grant of £1000 towards the recasting of the front three bells of the six and the general refurbishment of the whole ring.

The Surrey Association of Church Bell Ringers Bell Restoration Fund Charity Number: 260561