FONC

Last updated 8th July 2008

Norton sub Hamdon

Sponsored by Cycle Dorset and South Somerset.

Last updated 9th May 2008

FRIENDS OF NORTON CHURCH - Plan for 2008. As set up to do so, the FNC’s role is to support and assist the

Parochial Church Council in fulfilling its responsibilities to maintain our beautiful church and its precious features in a sound and

attractive condition. All buildings incur expense to maintain and repair them and, undoubtedly, the church is the most expensive

in the village! There are a number of candidates for repair and renovation; one area under consideration is the windows,

their glass and frames. The FNC’s fund raising events this year are - a Duck Race on Monday, 26 ^th May , an

evening talk at Wigborough Manor on Friday, 4 ^th July , a stall at the Flower Show on Saturday, August 16 ^th

selling artistic and other interesting items, and, in association with the Parochial Church Council, the Village Feast ,

(which celebrates the building of the existing church), on Saturday, 27 ^th September . Very many thanks are extended

to all those who contribute in numerous ways to the great success of the FNC’s activities.

The Friends of Norton Church are now organising a wine draw to be held every month. You have to subscibe on a six monthly basis.

The minimum entry is £1.00p which will buy you one ticket to go into the draw.

At least half the money subscribed will go onto draw prizes and the rest will go towards the funds for the Church.

If you wish to subscribe send me an e-mail and I will post off a form for you.

Church Clock at St. Mary’s, Norton sub Hamdon

Our Clock is unusual. It strikes the hours and quarters – but it has no faces to keep us on time between the quarters.

There is a story behind this – which is probably not true, if ‘thought through’. It was said that quarry owners on Ham Hill would

not allow faces on the clock because, had they been able to see the time, the quarry workers would have ‘clock watched’ towards

the end of the day, instead of continuing to work until they heard the time to finish!

The clock is a beautiful piece of traditional engineering, housed in a case in the Church Bells Ringing Chamber, about two thirds of

the way up the Tower. What is particularly interesting is that the movement is the same, but on a smaller scale, as the Great Clock

of Westminster (known popularly as Big Ben – but that is the hour bell). This was specially designed by Lord Grimethorpe and works

with a gravity escapement to cause the least interference with the pendulum.

Until about 30 years ago the clock was wound by hand – three times a week someone had to climb all the stairs and wind it.

If you have been up the Tower you will know what a hard climb that is! John Bentley, the Church Bells Ringing Captain, was one

of them who says that the clock winding was hard work also.

John Lynas who looked after the clock for 15 years.

Then, about 30 years ago, an electric winding system was put in and upgraded approximately 15 years ago by a contractor

supervised by Mike Cudmore and John Lynas. This system was quite ingenious, using small motors and long narrow chains

to lift relatively light weights up a long height - from way down the Tower. Inevitably, the fragile chains wore out and the

whole system had to be replaced.

The Friends of Norton Church (FNC), led by Peter Thomas our Rector, organised a funding campaign to raise almost £5,000

to pay for a new, modern clock winding system. All this activity took place during 2006 and the new system was installed and

commissioned early in 2007. The motors and weights are much bigger and operate in the clock cabinet itself. For the new

winding system, it was found necessary to upgrade the electrical system in the Church and to the latest standards, including

very expensive specialist cable required for public buildings. This cost in excess of £3,000 which was paid for by the FNC from

its on-going fund-raising events.

Some of the new Clock Winding System project team

Church Bell Ring Chamber: Sound Attenuation

This project is to attenuate the sound of the Church bells in the Bell Ringing Chamber to reduce the sound

levels from 79.1dB(A) down to 70dB(A) for the bell ringers. This measurement - double the required level - and

specification were provided in a visit report by a specialist from the Bath & Wells Diocesan Association of

Change Ringers.

The consequences of this excessive sound are that it makes it very difficult for the ringers to hear the timing

of the bells accurately and there is the possibility that their hearing may become impaired. Quite regularly

expert bands visit Norton Church to ring either a Quarter Peal (about 1¼ hours) or a Full Peal (over 3 hours)

and they complain about this problem. So for existing and would-be ringers, this is a deterrent which must be

avoided.

Then those in the general public when listening to the bells chiming do observe inaccurate ringing if all the ringers

are not co-ordinated within a fraction of a second of each other

The method of Ringing Chamber sound reduction used for over 100 years, from the restoration of the Church

Tower after the fire in 1894 until the refurbishment of the bells for the Millennium, was the use of bags of

oil-soaked sawdust laid directly under the bells.

Then prior to the Millennium, the Friends of Norton Bells, led by Phil Davis, raised approximately £25,000 for

this refurbishment and for increasing the number of bells from six to eight. When the bells were recast and

re-installed in 1895, with amazing fore-thought, the new wooden frame to hang the bells had space for two

additional bells installation later when sufficient funds became available. However, there were not sufficient funds at that

time to install adequate sound attenuation measures.

So, the previous method of sound reduction was used again, with the exception that oil soaking of the sawdust

was avoided for fire hazard reasons. This limited its effectiveness and, in addition, there were now two extra

bells to create more unwanted sound. It has proved to be inadequate, even when supplemented by pieces of

carpet but this was the only course of action possible, until now, for financial reasons.

Lifting the timber using a Tufer A beam about to be positioned

The Friends of Norton Church action group has taken on the funding and project including applying for grants

management of this project involving three contractors for a total project cost in the region of £4,000.

Peter Thomas, our Rector, has taken a leading position having obtained permission from the Diocesan Advisory

Committee. This is known as a ‘faculty’, being the term for the Church’s internal planning permission procedure

Gordon Rendell, a leading ringer from Montacute, and a carpenter by profession, was appointed to conduct the

necessary work. Therefore, he has both the knowledge to specify what was needed and the skills to carry it out.

Attaching a wall plate The new ceiling nearing completion

A new ‘false’ ceiling, comprising 2 inch thick of Douglas Fir, was installed over an area approximately 15

feet square. The great weight of this requires the support of two 9 inch by 4 inch beams, in addition to two

wall plates. Lifting of all this very heavy timber from the vestry floor through a trap door in the Ringing Chamber

floor required special lifting equipment and great care to avoid any damage or accidents. In addition, ‘sound boxes’

for each of the bell ropes were made by Gordon and installed between the original and new ceilings.

Gordon also supervised additional work by Edward Venn for necessary changes to the lighting system and by

Kenneth Woodley to alter the mechanism which prevents the clock striking when the bells are being rung.

(Report to follow on the outcome when the bells are rung with the above and comment upon removal of

existing insulation material and possible replacement with Rockwool).

For the report click here to read, at the bottom of the bell ringers page