Young people are taking up bell-ringing to make connections

Many students join sports teams or academic societies to make friends at university. Katie Anderson chose bell-ringing instead.

The 19-year-old says the hobby has helped her build friendships, learn new skills and spend less time looking at screens.

Katie says bell-ringing is a "very social thing to do" and a good way to connect with people away from her phone.

"It's nice not having something where you're sat on a screen all day," she says. "You get to do something a bit different with your time."

When she arrived at the University of Lincoln last year, she joined its bell-ringing society after learning the hobby from her partner's family.

Now president of the society, she wants to challenge the idea that bell-ringing is only for older generations.

Despite being the most digitally connected generation, young people are more likely to experience loneliness than older age groups, according to national data, external.

Bell-ringers say their hobby offers an antidote, bringing people together to learn, practice and socialise face-to-face.

"I love the socialising," Katie says.

"You're working with people to create this wonderful sound, but also there's always something new to learn.

"You get to learn stuff in such a social way, which I just really enjoy."

Katie says bell-ringing helps people slow down in a fast-moving world, even if it is not always relaxing.

"You're learning quite a lot," she says. "I wouldn't say it's quite relaxing in that way, but you're not in the world of technology when you're doing it."

Katie says there is a misconception that only older people take part in the tradition and there is a national push to get more young people involved.

One of the places keen to attract more young ringers is St Mary Magdalene Church in Gedney, Lincolnshire.

Tower captain, John Bennett, 94, says he would love to see more young people take up the hobby.

John, who started ringing when he was 14, says it is "excellent exercise for body and brain" and says learning the rhythms can be "quite complicated".

"It is very fascinating, you get hooked by it, as I was when I was young," he says.

"You meet all sorts of people from all walks of life... you're sure of companionship."

John says he will keep going "as long as my legs and arms hold up" but adds he would be "overjoyed" if a young person took the ropes from him.

Tina Stoecklin, president of the Central Council of Church Bell Ringers (CCCBR), says the hobby can be particularly beneficial for young people.

"There's a lot of mental health and social benefits," she says. "It just gets you out and talking to people and interacting with people in a really safe space."

There are about 40,000 bell-ringers in the UK, according to the CCCBR.

The organisation recently launched a Young Bell Ringers Hub, designed to help attract more young people to the activity by providing resources and support.

Tina, who has been ringing for 40 years, says one of the biggest attractions is the sense of belonging it creates.

"It's a chance where you make friends for a lifetime," she says. "From a social point of view, it's really, really important for young people."

Tina also says bell-ringing offers a rare opportunity for different generations to come together, connecting people of all ages and from all walks of life.

"We are like a second family that you can count on when you need it," she says.

"Actually putting your hands on a bell rope and ringing with other people... you get that camaraderie and you get that sense of village.

"For some people, when they tried out bell-ringing, they found their people and that's them sorted for the rest of their lives. That was certainly the case when I learned to ring."

Listen to highlights from Lincolnshire on BBC Sounds, watch the latest episode of Look North.

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