Bells can ring out at Russian church (From Oxford Mail)

Bells can ring out at Russian church

6:00pm Friday 3rd February 2012 in News By Oliver Evans

BELLS will ring out over part of Marston after church leaders overcame “anti-religious” objections to win council permission.

Oxford City Council members approved controversial plans on Wednesday for bells to be rung at the Russian Orthodox church of St Nicholas the Wonderworker.

The Ferry Road church can ring its four bells for up to three minutes once a day between 10.25am and 6pm on Sundays and 9.25am and 6pm Monday to Saturday.

They can also be rung for up to 15 minutes a week for weddings, funerals and feast days and at Christmas and Easter evening services.

Bells have not rung from the building since 1972, when it was sold by the Church of England and became a sign factory.

Planning permission was granted in 2008 to turn it back into a place of worship.

But the approval ruled out the church ringing bells unless it got further permission.

Twenty-four letters opposed the plan, while John Radcliffe Hospital immunologist Dr Adam Ritchie said it would disturb sleep patterns of shift workers.

He told councillors: “We find the idea of bell-ringing during what is, on the face of it, a reasonable time to be quite intrusive to those of us who do not sleep at normal times.”

Noise from the church had impacted on some residents “in a very dramatic way” he said.

The Rev Stephen Platt, the church priest, said: “Some of the campaign was directed against the church as a place of religious worship and was anti-religious in character.” He added: “There will be a minimal impact to our neighbours with whom we have begun to build up a good relationship.”

Bells from city centre churches and St Michael and All Angels in Marston Road could be heard in the area, he said.

And he claimed the sound of the St Nicholas bells would be similar to the jingle of an ice cream van going down the street.

The city council’s east area planning committee heard one funeral and two weddings had taken place since the church reopened in September 2010.

Planning officer Martin Armstrong said of the 15-minute rule: “Four weddings and a funeral and you’re there.”

Committee member Mark Mills said the sound would be similar to handbells.He added: “I really think it would be unreasonable to oppose this.”

But fellow councillor Dick Wolff said there was “no sense of contract” between the community and church that would support tolling bells to call worshippers.