The Friends of Lewes is pleased to support the appeal by St Thomas à Becket Church in Cliffe to improve access up the church tower – and to invite local residents to join a volunteer team to wind its turret clock every day.

Nearly £25,000 had to be raised to make the church tower’s 15^th-century spiral staircase safe, and meanwhile the clock has been out of action for over a year. Now it will be re-started, at midday on Friday 25 November 2022.

The clock dates to 1670 and is reputed to be the second oldest in Sussex, so this is an opportunity for volunteers to literally get a hand on their history. The church is aiming to engage with local people by creating a team of clock-winders, and is also planning guided tours of the clock and belfry, starting early next year.

The daily hand-winding that is required is a five-minute job, and St Thomas is aiming to establish a rota of winders who live nearby and would like to be hands-on to their town’s history. Interested members can get more information from parochial church council member Peter Varlow, peter@varlow.org.uk

More on the history of this clock