AN unfamiliar sound will ring over the village of Newton in the near future after a new set of bells was blessed in the village’s church.

Mowden Hall School, which owns St James’s Church in Newton, celebrated the success of a £100,000 fund-raising project for new bells on Tuesday when the new set were blessed in a special service before being hung.

Headteacher Neal Bailey was involved in starting the project around three years ago, after the bells had gone decades without ringing.

A combination of donations, fund-raising activities, and asking locals to sponsor a bell – allowing them to have their family name or the name of a loved one inscribed on one of the new bells – led to the total target being reached.

The old bells will now hang in a tower in Alnwick, while eight new bells were installed after being blessed by the school’s former chaplain, who returned to school for Tuesday’s service.

“With the bells being small, the idea is that young children, nine or 10 years old, will be able to ring them, which will be great for children in school,” said Mr Bailey.

And because local groups, including the cricket club, women’s institute and parish council have contributed to the project, representatives were invited from the community to join the whole school for the blessing.

“Although the church is owned by the school, it’s very much involved in the local community. It’s used by the community throughout the year and they have been involved in the fund-raising,” explained Mr Bailey.

“I have tried to keep them as involved as possible and I think this is a chance to bring the community and Mowden closer together too.”

The bells are expected to take some time to settle before they can be rung – hopefully early next year.