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It's a heavy job hoisting bells back up to the top of a church tower, especially when the heaviest weighs around 450 kilograms but that's what a team of people are doing at Tillingham church.

After hundreds of years of ringing, some of the fixtures and fittings have needed replacing, so the bells have been taken to the Whitechapel bell foundry in London.

The bells will soon be ringing again

Tony Eaton is the Tower Captain and he says the bells have been ringing there for centuries:

"The bells are different ages, and the fourth is the oldest bell, and it's 14th century."

Bell hanger, Neil Thomas, was one of the people who worked on the bells at Whitechapel and says hopefully now they will be ringing for many years to come:

"The fittings were all worn out, the bells were lowered from the tower, taken to London and fitted with modern galvanised fittings which will hopefully last longer than the wooden ones did."

The bells are now gradually being hoisted back up to the top of the tower which is a heavy job, so how many people does it take to pull them up?

The heaviest bell is nine hundredweight

"One person can pull at a time, but they quickly get worn out so you have to keep transferring people," says Tony.

To celebrate the bells being back in situ the people of Tillingham have planned their first ring for 3, August, and there will then be a dedication service. 

It is hoped that the work they have done will last around 150 years.

Listen to Tony and Neil talking to BBC reporter Felicity Simper by clicking on the link below.