St Cross Oxford

[simon_a_bond]

--- In bellhistorians at yahoogroups.com, David Willis <dcwillispiano at ...> wrote:
>
> 
> It would appear that these bells could be lost to our use as the church is 
> being converted into an archive storage. The City authorities are unwilling 
> for the bells to be removed, and when the Church conversion is completed  
> this would not be possible except through the roof.

I wonder where you got that information from. The "City authorities" are not currently causing any difficulty beyond requiring permissions that haven't yet been applied for. There are many involved parties, none of whom is actively standing in the way of the removal of the bells.

The church has been closed since late 2008 with the building now on a long-term lease to Balliol college for conversion to an archive and historical collections centre. The bells have consequently not been rung since mid-October 2008. They are unlikely ever to ring again in their current location as the situation of fittings in Balliols plan restricts available space at the base of the tower. Building work has now started and access to the church is no longer generally granted.

Efforts are now being made, with the co-operation of Balliol college, to secure relevant permissions to remove the bells for use elsewhere. It is hoped that everything will be in place ready for late 2010 when the building work is complete but before any collections are moved in. This is likely to be the only opportunity for the bells to be removed. If they remain after collections are moved in they will probably stay there indefinitely.

Hope that makes things a little clearer.

Simon