Skip to main contentEnter
Join 8,080+ people who care about this town
Ipswich.co.uk logoSupport our work
News

Free family fun day returns to Suffolk New College in May

Tickets are now on sale for the Big Day Out, a free family event taking place at Suffolk New College's rural campus in Otley on Saturday, 9 May 2026.

Organiser of Big Day Out Charlotte Rossiter
Organiser of Big Day Out Charlotte Rossiter
(Suffolk New CollegeSuffolk New College)

Why it matters: The event regularly attracts between 4,000 and 5,000 visitors and offers families a free day of entertainment.

The big picture: Big Day Out celebrates its 21st anniversary this year, having first launched in 2005. The campus will transform into what organiser Charlotte Rossiter describes as a "vibrant hub, offering a variety of stalls showcasing handmade crafts, deli products, sweet treats, and a selection of delicious food from local vendors."

The details: The event runs from 10:00-16:00 and will feature football activities ahead of the World Cup, demonstrations in the animal unit, a climbing wall, face painting, tractor displays, handmade crafts and local food vendors.

What they're saying: "The campus will be transformed into a vibrant hub, offering a variety of stalls showcasing handmade crafts, deli products, sweet treats, and a selection of delicious food from local vendors," said Charlotte Rossiter from Suffolk New College.

"This event offers the perfect opportunity to enjoy quality time with family, as well as seeing the huge investment that has taken place at Suffolk Rural," she added.

The bottom line: Big Day Out provides families with a free day of entertainment while showcasing the facilities at Suffolk New College's rural campus in Otley.

Car parking costs £5 per vehicle, but entrance is free.

It cost us ~£14 to cover this story

You can read it for free thanks to the generous support of Evolve Business Solutions and PLMR Genesis

Despite a lack of promotion, the big reveal drew a good crowd of passersby

We're regenerating Ipswich – but we can't do it without you!

People tell us every day that our work matters – that it's making Ipswich better; that it's needed. But our work costs money, and unlike the Ipswich Star, we're not funded by national advertisers or owned by corporate US overlords. For just £4.75 a month, you can help fund our mission to restore pride of place and accelerate the much-needed regeneration of the town we call home.
Become a member →

In other news...

News

From heroin to ketamine: How Suffolk's drug use is changing

Drug consumption habits in Suffolk are shifting, with people moving away from opiates such as heroin and towards cocaine, ketamine and crack – and a new report warns the county is also facing a growing threat from synthetic opioids 500 times stronger than heroin.
byand
Continue reading →
News

Suffolk councillor backs National Year of Reading

A Suffolk County Council cabinet member has pledged her support for the National Year of Reading and visited a local library on World Book Day to join a session for babies and toddlers.
by
Continue reading →
News

Ipswich man charged with murder after woman found dead

An Ipswich man has been charged with murder following the death of a 28-year-old woman whose body was found at a Russet Road address in the early hours of Tuesday morning.
by
Continue reading →
News

Anglia Retail Park to get 24 new EV chargers

Anglia Retail Park is set to nearly triple its electric vehicle charging capacity, with 24 new chargers to be installed alongside the Lidl store.
by
Continue reading →
Load more content
Our journalism is free thanks to
Our journalism is free thanks to
Want our best content delivered to your inbox every Friday?

Have you subscribed to our free weekly newsletter?

If you haven’t, you really should. You’ll get our best content delivered to your inbox every Friday afternoon, just in time for the weekend. You can unsubscribe at any time, although 99.7% of people don’t.

  • Lee Walker
  • Joe Bailey of Brighten the Corners
  • Mark Hubert
8,080+ people are already loving it