The Framework was developed by the Central Council of Church Bell Ringers Education Committee in 2006. It is no longer available on the Central Council website and is reproduced here to make it available to anyone interested. 9nb – links to the Council website no longer work.)
The future of ringing depends on the calibre of ringers trained, but training ringers effectively and efficiently presents many challenges. That puts a significant responsibility on those of us who conduct and manage training. With the future of ringing in our hands, we should all aspire to produce the best ringers that we can: safe and competent ringers, enthusiastic and committed ringers.
We should aim to manage whatever training resources we have as effectively as we can, so that the overall performance is better than the sum of the individual parts. For the future, we should aim to hand on training skills, and never become too dependent on single individuals, however talented they are.
The best way to meet these aspirations is to approach training in a systematic way: to identify the combination of processes, procedures and techniques are most suitable for your band's particular situation, to make sure that they are implemented, and then to check that everything works as intended.
To support such a systematic approach, the Education Committee of the Central Council of Church Bell Ringers has produced the Framework for Training Ringers.
The Framework provides a starting point for a systematic approach to training in your band. Its headings cover all aspects relevant to training, and the statements under each heading describe objectives that good practice will achieve. The Framework does not include detailed statements of how you should achieve these objectives.
The last point is important. It is a tool to help you think about training in a systematic way, and if necessary improve it. But it does not, and it could not, specify the details of what will work best for your band, in your particular situation. Only you can do that. One size doesn't fit all.
The Framework adds value because its headings cover all angles of training, including ones that you might not think about.
This is the simplest and easiest way to use the Framework. Look at each objective, and then ask yourselves:
In all cases, your answers will depend on your local context. What is right for your band might not be right for another.
If you don't want to cover all the headings in one go, then read through the headings first, and mark areas where you think there would be most to gain. Then focus on these first.
If you are not sure how to interpret the headings, there are supplementary questions and use them to prompt your thoughts (see below).
If several people are involved in training and management, you need a common understanding of how and why you do things, so you discuss the Framework together.
An informal review, using the Framework as a checklist, will meet the needs of many bands, but a minority will need something more formal - some sort of written description of how things are done that everyone can refer to. If this applies in your case, then you need to ask yourselves the same questions as above, but under each heading, write down what you do. In some cases, you might find it helpful to say why as well.
Make sure everyone involved agrees with what you have written down, ideally by including them in the discussion.
An even smaller minority of bands might be faced with an external requirement to produce a Code of Practice that covers training. Such a demand is most likely to come from your PCC, but might also come from concerned parents.
PCCs are legally responsible for everything done in the church, and with more and more legislation and regulation, many of them require things to be on a formal basis so they can demonstrate that things are being done properly. Parents might just be comparing ringing with the way training is managed for many other physical activities.
Obviously you need to understand the concerns of whoever is making the demands of your band. PCC demands might be triggered by an accident (not necessarily in your tower), by questions about regulation, insurance, etc, or maybe just by a vocal member of the congregation.
In such situations, people want some solid assurance that good practice is being applied. Writing things down, helps give that confidence, because it is possible to check whether you do what you say you do (the first mark of quality). Basing what you write around the Framework also shows that what you write is comprehensive, which gives extra confidence. It shows you have thought about things from different angles, and nothing is likely to 'fall between the cracks'. People also like to see schemes backed by external authoritative bodies.
A good response makes it more likely that 'your' procedures will be accepted, rather than something unsuitable being imposed on you.
The Framework covers ten aspects of training, in four groups:
The latest versions of the following documents can be downloaded from the CC Education Committee website: http://www.cccbr.org.uk/edc/edc.php or on request (see contact details in The Ringing World Diary).
Any queries about the use of the Framework, or suggestions for improvement should be sent to the chairman: edchair@cccbr.org.uk (or see contact details in The Ringing World Diary).
| Title | Author | Date | Publisher | Description |
| Bellhandling - A Tutor's Companion | Education Committee | 1997 | CC | Video tape (or DVD) illustrating techniques for teaching bellhandling, including demonstration of some common problems. |
| Manual of Bell Control | Norman Chaddock | 1989 | Marcus Press | Complete, fully illustrated guide to teaching and learning bell handling and rope control. |
| One Way to Teach Bell Handling | Richard Pargeter | 1995 | CC | A staged approach to teaching handling, based on personal experience of teaching a band from scratch, with advice on common problems at each stage. |
| Simulators and Teaching | Phil Gay | 1993 | CC | Describes the practical use of simulators as teaching aids at different stages of training. |
| Teaching beyond bell Handling | Richard Pargeter | 1998 | CC | Practical suggestions for getting your message across, the art of standing behind, powers of memory, and more. |
| Teaching from Rounds to Bob Doubles | Wilfrid Moreton | 1986 | CC | A structured scheme for progressing beyond initial training to develop method ringing ability and the associated additional bell control skills. |
| The Learning Curve - Volumes 1, 2, 3 | John Harrison | 1999 to 2005 | CC | Collections of articles on learning and teaching, originally published in The Ringing World |
| Tower Captain and the Training of Ringers | Peter Hurcombe | 1985 | Sussex CA | Detailed guidance on many aspects of tower management, teaching bell handling and simple methods, good striking and conducting. |
| Tower Captain's Handbook | David Parsons | 1983 | CC | Advice on: organisation, recruiting, teaching bell handling, running the ringing and maintenance, with appendices on call changes and touches of Plain Bob, Grandsire and Stedman. |
| The Tower Handbook | John Harrison | 1998 | CC | "Answers to 1001 questions about ringing". A 400-page compendium of information and advice on every aspect of ringing, including teaching and tower management, designed for browsing and easy reference in the tower. |
| Tutor's Handbook | Wilfrid Moreton & Norman Chaddock | 1995 | CC | Detailed guidance for those teaching ringers. Part 1 (Bell control) covers a staged method for teaching bell handling, hunting and call change exercises, raising and lowering, advice on common faults, teaching a new band. Part 2 (Elementary change ringing) has a progressive scheme of instruction with practical and theoretical exercises from hunting on three to ringing Plain Bob on six and more. Appendices cover particular techniques. |
For details of books and publishers, see http://www.cccbr.org.uk/pubs/ccpb.php or look for periodic advertisements in The Ringing World