SUDBURY RAMBLERS
Wednesday 14th November, Harwich coastal walk, a 5.25 mile walk, meet at Wellington Road car park, Harwich, CO123DL, 10:30am start. Deborah 01255831573.
Sunday 25th November, Boxted, Suffolk loop, a 5 mile walk, meet at Boxted church IP294LN, 10:30am start. Bridget 01787280547.
Wednesday 28th November, Circular via Stockyard Green & Milden, a 6.5 mile walk, roadside parking in Churchfield, Monks Eleigh, IP77JH, 10:30am start. Philip 07854179779.
Details of all our walks can be found by searching www.sudburyramblers.org.uk

JEWELLERY AND VALUATION EVENING
Friday 23rd November 6.30pm. Gainsborough's House Jewellery and Valuation Evening with John Benjamin and Diamond Raffle Draw Event at Gainsborough’s House, 46 Gainsborough Street, Sudbury, Suffolk CO10 2EU. John Benjamin is well-known for his appearances on the Antiques Road Show as their jewellery expert. He has kindly agreed to give us a talk on 18th century jewellery followed by a confidential valuation. Those attending are invited to bring one piece of jewellery to be valued on a first come first served basis. It would be helpful to let us know if you intend to bring an item. John will also be drawing the Diamond Raffle during the evening. First prize is a half-carat brilliant cut diamond kindly donated by Jonathan Lambert of Jonathan Lambert Fine Jewellers. In addition there are many other attractive prizes to be won. This is the culmination of the events that the Local Fundraising Committee have staged in order to raise funds for the capital project, Reviving an Artist’s Birthplace: A National Centre for Gainsborough during the House’s Diamond Year. As this is a special evening there will be no charge but we would encourage you to buy a raffle ticket (even if you have already). Tickets cost £5 each. There will be a donations bar.

SUDBURY SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA CONCERT
Sunday 25th November, 6.00pm. Sudbury Symphony Orchestra Concert in St Peter’s Church, Market Hill, Sudbury CO10 1TL. Sudbury Symphony Orchestra are delighted that Jill Morton returns as soloist for our evening of Scandinavian music. We start the evening in Norway with Grieg’s Piano Concerto which Jill played for us exactly 10 years ago to critical acclaim. It is then a short trip across the water to Denmark with Carl Nielsen’s 1st Symphony. This concert is also the 10th anniversary for our conductor Matt Andrews so it will be very special night for the orchestra.
Jill enjoys a highly successful career as soloist, chamber musician and teacher. Her performances have taken her throughout Britain and across Europe and have received critical acclaim. Since making her professional debut, she has performed in all the major concert halls throughout Britain and has worked with many eminent conductors.
Grieg’s Piano Concerto is a firm favourite for both audience and players with its glorious solo lines and soaring lyrical passages. Nielsen’s first symphony may not be as well known as the Grieg but it is just as expressive a work and is a delight for both player and listener. It has energy, vigour and a luminous soundscape – it really does deserve to be played more often. We hope you will join us for a very special musical evening and to celebrate 10 years under the baton of Matthew Andrews.

CHRISTMAS FAIR
Friday 30th November 2018, 3:30pm – 6:30pm. Christmas Fair at St Andrew’s Primary School, Bulmer, Sudbury, CO10 7EH. Everyone is welcome. Come along to our Christmas fair and buy Christmas gifts. There will be refreshments (inc beer and mulled wine), hot food and cake stall. An afternoon of fun for the children too. Gift stalls, Craft stalls, Games, Tombola, Raffle and not forgetting… Santa’s Grotto

CHRISTMAS CONCERT
Friday 21st December. Stour Valley Singers present a concert of Christmas music conducted by Susannah Edom. It is called "When Icicles Hang"and takes place at St Peters Church, Sudbury at 7.30pm. There will be additional music by The Selion Jazz Trio. Tickets are available at the door and cost £10 which includes a glass of wine and refreshments. Proceeds will be donated to The Bridge Project, Sudbury

Permanent and Seasonal Attractions
Permanent and Seasonal Attractions in the District include: Flatford (NT), Lavenham Guildhall (NT), Melford Hall (NT), Kentwell Hall. Please see contact details for these below.
Gainsborough’s House - Mon to Sat: 10am – 5pm Adults £6.50
Long Melford Heritage Centre - Sat 10am-4pm, Sun Noon-4pm, Weds 2pm-4pm. Free Entry

Various Dates
Stepping Out in Suffolk- Health Walks, See web site www.walkingforhealth.org.uk
Guided Countryside Walks – See www.getting-out.co.uk

SAVE FREE PARKING IN SUDBURY
Sudbury’s businesses are proud to be able to offer their customers 3 hours free parking in their District Council Car Parks. However, there is currently a review by Babergh District Council who are considering starting charging for the currently free period and businesses are very concerned by how this will affect their trade. There has been a lot of publicity about how High Streets all over the country are struggling, initially it was the competition from out of town shopping, who not only benefit from being able to offer free parking but also have lower business rates, now it is the growth in online shopping, which again does not have the same high levels of business rates. Reports can be found to show evidence that shopkeepers overestimate the proportion of customers that travel by car. However, these reports relate to metropolitan areas rather than small rural towns where many people have no option but to drive to the shops.
Keeping three hours free parking in Sudbury is important to both businesses, visitors and residents as demonstrated in two recent surveys carried out by the Sudbury Town Team. In a survey of businesses in Sudbury Town Centre in January 2014, free car parking was the main issued which was raised as the most important factor to the success of their business in the future. Stephane Chapotot co-owner of The Secret Garden in Friars Street said "business rates are a large proportion of our costs and on top of that as a business we also have to pay for our bins to be emptied, what are these business rates going towards if we are also going to lose free parking for our customers?"
Another survey carried out by the Sudbury Town Team and Gainsborough's House of visitors and residents who visited the town centre which come out in June 2015 showed that 31.7% came into Sudbury because of the free parking and 27.3% would like more free parking available.
Jane Hatton from the Sudbury Town Team said " Local authorities should see free parking as a service for local people not a short term method to raise money and more importantly as a way of supporting their market towns. It has been proven in other towns that when they lose free parking it discourages people from using the town centre, towns where parking charges have been introduced have then had to offer hours when parking is free to increase footfall but the damage to their town centres has already been done".
Chris Storey from Sudbury Chamber of Commerce added "A careful scrutiny of the details surrounding the location of Sudbury, access to the town and other retail centres and the particular challenges of the town centre should make it absolutely clear that three hours free parking is essential if the town centre is not to decline significantly. From a purely economic perspective the council should not have any grounds for bringing in charges. The town is dependent on this for its future prosperity and a more retrograde step is hard to envisage. Reducing the long term rateable value of the town centre – which is likely to result from such an act – together with the reduced employment and wellbeing derived from the town centre would reduce long term local government income and be far more costly than the small income car parking charges would produce. The Chamber in conjunction with the Town Team remain resolved to fight these proposals and ensure that the town centre can have a long term viable and successful future for the benefit of all, including Babergh District Council.”
If you have any comments or thoughts on Sudbury losing free parking please leave your comments at http://seeanddosudbury.co.uk/community-news/10154/ or email info@seeanddosudbury.co.uk

CONTACTS
Assington Mill, Assington Ln,Sudbury, CO10 5LZ. 01787 229955
www.assingtonmill.com
Flatford: Bridge Cottage – NT Flatford,East Bergholt CO7 6UL 01206 297201 www.nationaltrust.org.uk/flatford- bridge-cottage/
Kentwell, Kentwell Hall, Long Melford, CO10 9BA, 01787 310 207, http://www.kentwell.co.uk
Lavenham Guildhall – NT, Market Place, Lavenham CO10 9QZ. 01787 247646 www.nationaltrust.org.uk/lavenham-guildhall/
Lavenham Tourist, Information Centre, Lady Street, Lavenham CO10 9RA. 01787 248207 www.southandheartofsuffolk.org.uk
Melford Hall, Long Melford, Sudbury, Suffolk, CO10 9AA. 01787 379228. http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/melfor
d-hall/
Mander Auctioneers, Glemsford, near Sudbury CO10 7QU. 01787 282261 www.manderauctions.co.uk
The Quay Theatre, The Quay Theatre, Quay Lane, Sudbury. CO10 2AN. 01787 374745. www.quaytheatre.org.uk
Contemporary East Anglian Artists and Tudor Life Exhibition. Gainsboroughs House, 46 Gainsborough St. Sudbury CO10 2EU Normal entry prices. Contact 01787 372958 www.gainsborough.org