East Suffolk Council
Supporting Heritage Open Days in East Suffolk
East Suffolk Council is proudly supporting Heritage Open Days, the UK’s largest free festival of history and culture, taking place this year from 12 to 21 September.
East Suffolk Council is encouraging local groups, societies, venues, and organisations to get involved in this year’s Heritage Open Days, by opening a historic building, leading a walk, running a workshop, or sharing untold stories. This year’s theme is architecture and no matter how big or small, every event adds to the festival’s rich celebration of East Suffolk’s heritage.
To encourage local participation, East Suffolk Council is offering small grants of up to £500 to help voluntary, community, faith, and social enterprise organisations to host events as part of the festival. The grant application deadline is 4pm on 1 May.
As part of its support, East Suffolk Council is also inviting both new and experienced organisers to a Heritage Open Days Organisers Event on Wednesday 23 April (1pm–3pm) at the Long Shop Museum in Leiston. This in-person informal session will be led by Sarah Holloway of the national Heritage Open Days team, offering practical guidance, inspiration, and support for event planning and delivery. Book your place!
Cllr Sarah Whitelock, East Suffolk’s cabinet member for Communities, Culture, Leisure and Tourism said: “We recognise the importance of enabling more people to engage with East Suffolk’s rich heritage. The small grant scheme will help more venues across the district to take part in this year's Heritage Open Days festival and broaden the activities on offer to increase participation. We especially welcome applications from projects aiming to increase visitors to our towns, those which provide interactive or educational experiences and those which contribute to the growth of the local cultural and creative economy."
Liam Montgomery, Marketing and Projects Manager at Heritage Open Days, said: “For me, architecture is just as much about people as it is about buildings themselves. While I’m just as captivated by awe-inspiring spaces as anyone (and we certainly have plenty of those across Heritage Open Days), I think this theme offers a great way to tell powerful stories about how buildings and places are used and shape our lives. I can’t wait to see what our community will spotlight this year.”