Abbey Christmas everyone as five day festive events announced by partners

10 Mar 2022

A five day series of festive events is set to be put on in Bury St Edmunds to boost business and help communities and visitors have a good Christmas.

To make sure everyone has an ‘Abbey Christmas’, festivities will kick off early on 17 November with the Our Bury St Edmunds BID Christmas Lights event. This will be followed by the St Edmund's Day Weekend Spectacle of Light running from 17 to 20 November (St Edmunds Day).

Then, from November 23, there will be five festive days of Christmas events which will include a range of entertainment and bespoke themed markets and activities.

All of the five day events are being planned, delivered and paid for by the new Christmas in Bury St Edmunds Partnership. This will also complement the events being put on by the Abbey 1000 celebrations.

The five days of Christmas events, being held from November 23 to 27, take over from the former Christmas Fayre. The aim is to deliver a set of linked entertaining, varied and safe events, with minimal disruption to residents and local businesses. Crucially it will provide an opportunity to showcase all that Bury St Edmunds has to offer for visitors as well as encouraging return visits throughout the year.

The Christmas in Bury St Edmunds partnership are working up the details of the various events and more information will be released in due course. But people are urged to put these dates in their diary. As details are confirmed they will be released on the Christmas in Bury St Edmunds section of the Bury and Beyond website.

The partnership, which will be jointly resourcing, funding, planning and delivering the five days of Christmas events includes: The Arc, Our Bury St Edmunds BID, Bury St Edmunds Town Council, St Edmundsbury Cathedral and West Suffolk Council.

Julie Baird, Director (Planning and Growth) for West Suffolk Council, said: “I would like to thank the partnership in coming together to work on delivering a series of festive activities over five days to support our local businesses and help everyone have a great Christmas. By having this partnership we all hope to be able to deliver together a series of events that will take over from the traditional Christmas Fayre and appeal to everyone. We want get the balance on creating an attractive, enjoyable and safe event and one that will complement the Abbey 1000 celebrations as well as the other festivities that will be going on in November and December.”

Mark Cordell, Chief Executive of Our Bury St Edmunds BID, said: “The Christmas Fayre was always such an important and popular event for the town and its businesses, although I acknowledge there were some businesses and residents who were less supportive of it. As a consequence, I am delighted that this new partnership has come together with the aim of creating an event that retains the benefits of the Fayre but hopefully reduces the inconvenience and disruption that some have previously experienced. It is essential for Bury to raise its profile as a visitor and retail destination post Covid and I am confident that this new event will positively contribute to achieving this objective. It’s an exciting time for the town and I know that the majority of BID businesses will welcome this good news”

Catherine, Rayson, Marketing Manager for St Edmundsbury Cathedral, said: “We’re delighted to partner with The Arc, Our Bury St Edmunds BID, Bury St Edmunds Town Council and West Suffolk Council and support the festive events in the town this year. 2022 is such an important year for celebrating Bury St Edmunds with the Abbey 1000 celebrations happening throughout the year.”

Greg Luton, Bury St Edmunds Town Clerk said, “This initiative is the next stage in the life of our fantastic annual Christmas festivities which we all look forward to each year.  It is a great opportunity to draw visitors and residents into the town centre and bring the Christmas spirit alive, once again.”

Allan Hassell, Centre Manager at arc said: “At arc, we are proud to be part of the Christmas in Bury St Edmunds Partnership to bring the town a Christmas full of festivities which will support the entire community of businesses around us. I'm really looking forward to my first Christmas here in Bury St Edmunds and I am confident that the planned activities will be not only enjoyable, but memorable for all, and really put Bury St Edmunds on the map."

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