A Bridport church which has come under fire for the sounds of its bells is inviting people in to learn about bellringing.

The event is an opportunity for visitors to learn why the bells 'do not sound as well as they should'.

St. Mary’s Church in South Street has received 'both positive and negative feedback' regarding bellringing and is now inviting visitors to learn about the training of the historic skill on Monday, March 20 at 2pm.

Rector Deb Smith and Tower Captain Bob Hardwick will also stay back from 3pm, once the ringing has completed, to allow visitors to see the tower and the belfry (the bell chamber).

Following the coronavirus pandemic, the church lost ringers and have since began training five new recruits, however Mr Hardwick explained that ‘it can be hard to get rhythm,’ particularly as they have to be so ‘precise’ and that there is ‘no volume control.’

The chimes were recently described as ‘a cacophony of loud noise,’ by a nearby resident - but the church would like to encourage people to head along to the event and learn about what is going on and discuss the changes.

Mr Hardwick said: “We’re people and we’ll listen.

“We are aware that when we are training, the bells do not sound as well as they should, and we are working very hard to get better, and improve our rhythm, however, there is no volume control on a church bell, so we know that we need to ring well.”

The group meet for training on Thursdays from 7.30pm-9pm, and also ring with learners at 2pm on Mondays. Training people up is particularly important for the group ahead of the king's coronation.

Mr Hardwick added: “We would like to take people and show them the bellringing.

“We have tried everything we can for our community, we are aware that the changes to the bell sounds involve a wide community. If anyone wants to meet us to give us their feedback, we would be happy to meet and understand."