It consists of 125 pages devoted to the history itself with appendices setting out details of the constitutions, tours held, membership details (so everybody’s name appears at least once), officers and officials, peals rung plus some personal reminiscences. A total of 270 pages with colour photos (black & white for the early years) produced as an A5 size hard back book. To keep the project manageable from a cost perspective only 100 copies have been produced.

The inaugural meeting of the University of Wales Society was held on the 19 February 1959 in a car travelling at 60mph between Port Talbot and Swansea following a successful peal attempt at Aberavon. Although this peal was claimed as the ‘first peal to be rung by an all University of Wales band’, the performance was credited to the Llandaff and Monmouth Diocesan Guild given it was the practice to ring peals for the local association at the time. The early rules restricted membership to ringing graduates and those students who were pursuing a degree course at one of the University Colleges at Aberystwyth, Bangor, Cardiff, Swansea or at St David’s College Lampeter. An innovation at the outset was however, to allow associate membership to be conferred on other individuals who had contributed significantly to ringing at the University. This has benefited the Society over the years by helping to sustain its activities when there were fewer student numbers. In 1975 the name of the Society was changed to the Welsh Colleges’ to broaden the membership criteria to all higher education institutions in Wales. This has meant the Society’s continued relevance in recent years with the diminished scope of the University of Wales following the independence of most institutions to award their own degrees.

A major theme has been to hold regular ringing tours, primarily to provide student ringers dispersed around the Principality the opportunity to get together to practice. These are held in different parts of the UK in addition to Wales and the Welsh borders. They have traditionally been very social events and thereby have attracted other ringers, many of whom were to later become associate members. Finding affordable accommodation has seen the Society concentrating on the use of local church and other meeting halls for ringing tours. These have varied in quality from one to five stars (as seen through gaps in the roof while lying in your sleeping bag during the night) to first class accommodation with showers and all modern conveniences. In recent years it has been noticeable that many of the older members now opt for local hotels or air B&B outlets instead – if only to escape the snoring of certain members after a long session in the pub. The lock-in rather than lock-out is the norm on tours!

The Welsh Colleges’ has had a number of notable members. This has provided the opportunity to accumulate a respectable peal record over the years, allowing the WCs to be one of the few university societies able to claim a peal of Bristol Surprise Maximus rung entirely by collegiate members. Quarter peal weekends are also organised in addition to the regular ringing tours.

In addition to the main Society, a number of separate societies have been established over the years to encourage local student ringing in each of the university centres. The first college society was established as the University College of Wales Society at Aberystwyth in 1961. The Cardiff Students Society followed in 1980 and more latterly there has been a collegiate society at Bangor. Although there has been a nucleus of student ringers at other higher education institutions during certain periods, no other separate societies have resulted.

A detailed history of the Society was compiled to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Society in 2010 – copies of which are still available to buy. Please contact the General Secretary for more information.