Hagley, St John the Baptist

The Parish Church of St John the Baptist [1, 2] in Hagley is situated within the grounds of Hagley Hall Parking was not a problem but it may be if there is an event at Hagley Hall.

I visited for the first time on Monday 5^th May 2009 for a session arranged in advance of the WDCRA AGM. The ringing room is reached by climbing a long stone spiral staircase that is in excellent condition, not surprising I suppose since it was only added in 1865 along with the peal of 8 bells. The entrance to the staircase is inside the tower. The ringing room is not very big with little space for anyone not ringing. There were a lot of people wanting to ring here and I only managed to ring some Rounds and call changes on bell #7 which was odd struck. The bells are very light and I cannot say that I particularly enjoyed ringing them.

The tower has a ring of 8 bells with a tenor weighing 7-3-12 in F♯. Dove's Guide includes details of the bells at St John the Baptist. No information on the bells history or inscriptions was to be found in the tower.

The Worcestershire & Districts Change Ringing Association have additional information on St John the Baptist, Hagley.