the central council of church bell ringers

Young people and ringing

Organisations and award schemes for young people

Girlguiding, Scouting and the Duke of Edinburgh's Award Scheme all offer recognition of achievement for ringing activities and accomplishment.

Please note that many leaders of young peoples' groups are understandably wary of activities that remove individuals from their direct care and prefer to send an adult with them as a chaperone, at least for the initial meeting. This particular aspect is best discussed personally on a local basis in the light of the local Church and ringers' policies. The presence of a parent, of course, resolves the issue.

Please also see the Council's guidelines on Protecting Young People.

Training young ringers

The report Trends in Ringing, commissioned by the 2000 Central Council meeting at Bury St Edmunds recommended the consideration of fast-track training courses for young people and the provision of better ways to support university ringing societies.

In January 2004 the Education Committee responded with a Trainging young people (Discussion paper) setting out the issues, problems and possibilities. This was followed in September 2005 by its conclusions and recommendations in Training young people (Conclusions).

The reports were published in The Ringing World in January 2004 and September 2005, respectively.