Their chimes are the quintessential sound of village life, which has been under attack from disgruntled neighbours.
But church bells are set to be protected under new planning rules that will stop people silencing them, ministers have confirmed.
Even though their bells have chimed for centuries, churches across the country have been slapped with night-time noise abatement orders after complaints from just a handful of neighbours.
Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, Sajid Javid, promised new measures to protect church bells
Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, Sajid Javid, promised new measures to protect the historic landmarks.
‘Churches have been part of British life in towns and villages for centuries,’ he told the Daily Telegraph.
‘Their bells should not be silenced by new housing going up which is why planning policy will be strengthened to ensure it will be up to developers building new properties nearby to identify and tackle noise problems.’
It comes after the bells at St Peter’s Church in Sandwich, Kent, were silenced between 11pm and 7am in November 2017 after a single neighbour complained.
Even though more than 4,000 people signed a petition to keep the bells tolling, the council said it had a ‘statutory duty to investigate noise complaints’.
Bells have chimed at the Norman church, which was built in the 13th century, every 15 minutes since 1779.
Local MP Craig Mackinlay started campaigning to keep the bells ringing on behalf of his constituents and welcomed the news.
He told the Telegraph: ‘The bell has tolled for local meddlers who want to silence the chimes and local councils who too frequently put common sense and centuries of tradition aside to come to decisions that are held in respect by local people.’
This comes after the bells at St Peter’s Church (pictured) in Sandwich, Kent, were silenced between 11pm and 7am in November 2017 after a single neighbour complained
A Whitehall source also told the paper current planning rules state that requests cannot be unreasonable.
They added that historic buildings should have precedence over newer businesses that complain about the noise.
In recent years a handful of churches across England have been forced to silence their bells because of night-time noise abatement orders.
In September a church in the Lake District was forced to silence its bells overnight when tourists staying in the local pub complained of the noise.
St Andrew’s Church in Coniston came under fire from guests at the Yewdale Inn, who said they couldn’t sleep because of the regular tolls.
While outraged neighbours claimed the bells were the sound of village life, the council fitted a timer to stop the bells chiming between 11pm and 7am.