Strike a Light is pleased to be part of new Piddinghoe Bells heritage project in East Sussex.

Piddinghoe’s Grade 1-listed church has been awarded £34,000 from the National Lottery Heritage Fund to restore and transform its historic bells.

The successful funding application by the Parochial Church Council at Piddinghoe will support the 900-year-old church of St John’s bell’s restoration and the exciting revival of church bell ringing in our small East Sussex village.

The project will help to restore the bells in the church, and also develop intangible heritage through local history and community memory.⁠ ⁠The current three bells, dating from the 18th century, will be repaired, and refurbished while three more will be added. The six bells will be rung ‘full circle’ – creating the tuneful ringing so familiar across the UK. ⁠

The £83,500 project, led by a team of four villagers and with additional funding and expertise provided by a local businessman, is designed to build engagement with the church and its bells and will target young people in neighbouring Newhaven.

Strike a Light – Arts & Heritage will be delivering oral History training to Newhaven secondary school pupils to record memories of Piddinghoe village residents and links to St John’s Church. We start in November and will enjoy training the next generation of historians ⁠in a variety of new skills.

The process will be documented by a local film maker and the outputs will be shared with a permanent interactive exhibition and an exhibition at the newly established Cultural Space in Newhaven.

Find out more about the Piddinghoe Bells project here:

https://strikealight.org/projects/piddinghoe-bells/

http://finemarketingdev.co.uk/restore-historic-bells/