Villagers furious after church banned from ringing 'nuisance' 177-year-old bells following complaints from neighbour
St Michael's in Mytholmroyd, West Yorkshire, was stunned to receive an abatement notice about its beloved clock bells.
The church was ordered to silence the chiming between 11pm and 7am after being notified of a complaint from a disgruntled resident of the proud village.
Traditionally the clock - a staple in the village for up to 177 years - has rung out the full Westminster chimes, with four quarter bells that chime every 15 minutes and a bell that strikes on the hour.
A £2,500 device would be needed to limit the bells to only chiming at night - so in order to comply with the Calderdale Council order, the bells have temporarily fallen silent for the first time in more than a century.
Now devastated residents of the village - birthplace of poet Ted Hughes - have slammed the decision and set up an online petition to reinstate the bells, claiming they're 'the soundtrack of our community's daily life'.
Roy Wrathall, who's been a church warden at St Michael's for nine years, said the church was there 'for everybody' so they would comply with the notice.
'We don't have the facilities to silence overnight,' he said.
An online petition calling for the church bells to be allowed to peal again has attracted 1,296 signatures
'There's very much two sides to it.
'There's "I'm awake in the night, there goes the clock, that reassures me" and "I can't get to sleep because I keep hearing that clock every 15 minutes".
'It's not an easy one to resolve.
'Wearing the church hat - we're there for everybody, so we'll do what the law says we have to do and do our best to try and please as many people as we can.
'The only way we can comply between 11pm and 7am is to stop the chimes.
'The clock's still going but the chimes have stopped.'
The eerie silence has been a particular blow as many locals associated the return of the chimes with the village recovering from devastating floods which also inundated the church in 2015.
'There was several feet of water in there - right by the river and houses around the same,' Mr Wrathall said.
'There was no electricity, no street lights and there was no clock going in the church so there were no chimes, it was silent.
'One of the things that was a sign of recovery to a lot of people was when the clock started chiming again, things were getting back to what they viewed as the norm.
'There are people who still find the clock during the night reassuring, but equally there's someone down in the village who it doesn't work like that for.'
Furious locals have set up a Change.org petition to reinstate the bells, which has racked up 1,296 signatures.
The petition reads: 'Growing up in the heart of Mytholmroyd, the sound of St Michael's church bells ringing through the village has been a cherished part of my life.
'These bells have chimed since 1848, long before any of us were here - a symbol of continuity and community for over a century.
'My family's roots run deep in this village, and for us, as for numerous other residents, the chimes are more than bells - they are the soundtrack of our community's daily life.
'We propose that Calderdale council reconsider their decision and engage with the community to find a solution that satisfies both the individual who raised the complaint and the majority of village residents.
'Solutions such as soundproofing options for the complainant's residence.
'Preserving these bells means preserving our history and community.
St Michael's Church says it has been left with no choice but to silence the chimes 'completely' following 'a complaint from a neighbour'
'Their sound is a legacy we must protect for future generations.
'Support our campaign to keep the bells of St Michael's ringing in Mytholmroyd.'
One supporter wrote: 'Born and bred in Mytholmroyd, still my home in my heart.
'The bells of Saint Michael's need to be heard, not silenced.'
Another commented: 'Growing up in the 'Royd those bells were my clarion call to get home for dinner.
'With the bells silenced I worry about the poor children who may starve for lack of eating dinner.
'I feel that 177 years of the bells ringing being silenced by one objector is ridiculous.'
Calderdale Council says it has received 'several complaints from local residents about the noise of the church clock chime overnight, and the substantial impact it was having on their quality of life'.
'We investigated the complaints in line with our legal duty, and this involved identifying whether the noise was causing a substantial or unreasonable impact on the quality of life of those who had complained,' said Danielle Durrans, cabinet member for public services and communities.
'The noise from churches and other similar establishments is something that many councils across the country have had to investigate.
'We understand how much local people value heritage and the tradition of the church clock.
'However, the evidence from our investigation showed that the regularity and volume of the bell chiming, at the time of night when people are sleeping, was causing a substantial impact, so we had no option but to determine a statutory nuisance and serve an abatement notice requiring the chimes not to operate between 11pm and 7am.
'We have received no appeals against the abatement notice, and the decision to stop the chiming during the day as well as night-time was taken by the town council and Erringdon Benefice.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
3 hours ago
- The Independent
£13m scheme boosts rare wildlife but experts warn ‘time running out' for nature
The Government's nature boss has warned 'time is running out fast' to halt declines in wildlife, as results from a £13 million scheme show it is possible to help threatened species. The Species Recovery Programme's capital grants scheme, which ran from August 2023 to March 2025, saw Government nature agency Natural England invest in targeted conservation efforts to help rare wildlife such as water voles, oystercatchers and lady's slipper orchids. Natural England said the scheme supported the recovery of more than 150 species, many of which were on the brink of national extinction, through creating habitat, captive breeding and translocating wildlife to help it expand into new areas, and research. The scheme has scored successes including the first wild-hatched red-billed chough chick fledging in Kent for more than 200 years, the reintroduction of black grouse to the North Yorkshire Moors and the return of the large marsh grasshopper to the Norfolk Broads after 85 years, Natural England said. Tunnels have been installed under a road in Berkshire to allow adders to cross, disused buildings have been made ideal for bat breeding in Sussex and the first example of lady's slipper orchids naturally propagating in the wild has been recorded in Yorkshire. The scheme invested in 63 different projects from the Lizard Peninsula in Cornwall to Cumbria and Northumberland, working with 78 organisations to create or enhance 2,400 hectares (5,900 acres) of wildlife-rich habitat. That includes 143 'leaky dams' to support Atlantic salmon, white-clawed crayfish and freshwater pearl mussels, at the same time as reducing flood risk and improving water quality. And more than 15,000 individual animals and plants were translocated to expand species' territories, as well as captive breeding more than 12,000 individuals including invertebrates, mammals and birds. Natural England chairman Tony Juniper said the success of the programme showed nature could be restored, but warned there was a need for more projects, more volunteers and more money, particularly from the private sector. And there needed to be action to improve the environment, such as reducing pollution. He will tell an event on Wednesday to mark the success of the grant scheme held at Brandon Marsh, Warwickshire, where rare bitterns are staging a comeback: 'A rising number of nature recovery projects, both large and small, are making a huge difference up and down the country. 'The success of this programme is an example of how much we can do when we take a joined up, collaborative approach to restoring the natural world. 'We know we can turn round species decline and improve ecosystems with the right targeted actions, the drive and the funding. 'But time is running out fast – turning round nature's decline needs to be a collective endeavour, so this is not just the preserve of dedicated specialists. 'Nature recovery work needs more projects, more volunteers and more money to flow from all sources, particularly the private sector. 'It will also need to go hand in hand with improved environmental quality, including through reduced pollution.' The Government is set to publish a revised environmental improvement plan in the autumn to deliver legally binding green targets, after the Office for Environmental Protection watchdog said the previous government was largely off-track to meet the goals. Mr Juniper said the publication would be a 'key moment', warning there needed to be increased ambition on species recovery, in particular what could be done on some of the wildlife England has lost. 'In the coming years, habitat management and creation alongside species reintroductions could be a real game changer for the health of ecosystems and help us achieve the country's legally binding targets,' he said. Natural England is also publishing a threatened species recovery actions guide detailing how to support more than 1,000 of England's most threatened species, from the small pearl-bordered fritillary butterfly, corncrake and natterjack toad to tiny lichens. Richard Benwell, chief executive of the Wildlife and Countryside Link coalition of conservation groups, said: 'Today's results prove species conservation works – but it's still run on a shoestring, with short-term pots of money far from enough to halt nature's decline. 'Government must boost public funding and mandate private investment to multiply this impact tenfold. 'The new environmental improvement plan should also lock in a long-term pipeline of funding for species and the habitats they rely on, combining public and private finance to turn one-off wins into lasting recovery.'
The Independent
4 hours ago
- The Independent
Friday's EuroMillions jackpot estimated to hit £201m
Friday's EuroMillions lottery jackpot will reach an estimated £201 million after Tuesday's top prize went unclaimed. While no one matched the jackpot, one UK player came close – winning £680,767 for matching five numbers and one Lucky Star. The National Lottery EuroMillions winning numbers are 18, 28, 42, 46 and 48. The lucky stars are 03 and 09. No tickets matched all five numbers to take home £1,000,000 in EuroMillions Hotpicks, which uses the same numbers as the EuroMillions draw. Three players matched four numbers, winning £30,000 each. Tuesday's National Lottery Thunderball winning numbers are 21, 29, 34, 36 and 38. The Thunderball is 08. No one took home the £500,000 top prize, but one player matched five numbers to win £5,000.
The Sun
4 hours ago
- The Sun
Kids share their top 10 wonders of the world… and they might not be where you think
A STUDY of 381 six-and-seven-year-olds, revealed their favourites out of the millions of everyday wonders. Caterpillars (40 per cent), puddles (27 per cent), and diggers (17 per cent) were among the things to children in their tracks. 3 3 3 With 81 per cent picking up and keeping ' treasures ', such as stones from the beach, or a particularly wondrous stick discovered in the woods. It also emerged this wonder is having an impact on their parents, with 62 per cent, of the 600 mums and dads also polled, crediting their youngster for making them appreciate the magic of the everyday things in their environment. In fact, 55 per cent of parents are more likely to notice and be amazed by these daily wonders because their child is. As part of Specsavers' 'Wonder' campaign, alongside commissioning this research, museum-style exhibitions have launched across the UK showcasing children's 'wonders of the world' to get parents thinking about the importance of children's eye health and its impact on their joy and curiosity. Each installation in London, Manchester, Belfast, Edinburgh and Cardiff features a different 'wonder' selected by five local children, alongside their very own plaque. This includes Yusuf's Digger, Aoife's Caterpillar, Ava's Sunflower, Ffion's Rock, and Mila's Seashell. Professor Sam Wass, child psychologist and neuroscientist, said: "Children see the world in a way adults often forget - full of magic, mystery and wonder. "Good vision is essential to this journey of discovery. "It helps children explore, ask questions and learn through play, all of which are essential to their development." And kids said they're most likely spot everyday amazing things at the beach (68 per cent), in the garden (63 per cent), or at their local park (50 per cent). But 35 per cent will even find something interesting to inspect on the way to school, according to the figures. Nearly seven in 10 (68 per cent) parents said their children often stop to look at things most would consider everyday - on average, five times-a-day. Common phenomena they observe their children stopping to watch and wonder at included birds on a wire (26 per cent), reflections in water (20 per cent), and slug and snail trails (16 per cent). More than a quarter (26 per cent) even report often being late every few days because their child is too busy being fascinated by an object. Perhaps as a result, over half (56 per cent) have been encouraged to slow down and look more closely at the world around them. Which may help the 39 per cent who admitted they very much take their ability to see clearly for granted. A further 66 per cent would be concerned if their little one stopped pointing out these everyday wonders. As 19 per cent also said this would be among the reasons they'd book an eye test for their child, as well as if they were struggling to read or write (45 per cent) or rubbing their eyes frequently (44 per cent). Sarah Joyce, director of optometry at Specsavers, added: "Being able to see clearly is vital to children as they learn about the world - as around 80 per cent of learning in school is visual. "But around one in five children under the age of 10 have sight conditions that can get in the way of all that wonder. "Conditions such as long- or short-sightedness, astigmatism, or a squint can often be treated more effectively if they are picked up early - meaning regular eye tests from the age of four, or sooner if they are having any problems, are essential.
