On Sunday 13th October, the Mayor’s Civic Service at St Mary Le Tower, Ipswich celebrated the achievements of the 550-day (18-month) project.
Proceedings kicked off with the Mayor’s annual procession from the Town Hall, featuring Cardinal Wolsey himself, led by a marching band, and greeted at the church by Tudor musician Emma Mordue performing a pavane dance and a song with children from St Mark’s primary school, which they had first performed at Wolsey’s Big Huzzah parade this summer.
At the service, Wolsey 550 Education Lead, Hannah Houghton reflected how children in primary schools had grown in confidence, how teenagers had been inspired to follow their passions, and how the young Wolsey 550 Place Changers had visibly transitioned through their involvement in ambitious street art projects which them the opportunity to leave their mark on their town.
Later at a Town Hall reception, Project Chair Terry Hunt congratulated the team in securing further funding to work with schools and other educational settings until March 2025, and spoke about how much the project had delivered for Ipswich, saying it was just the end of the beginning, as key partners and project organisers prepare to deliver more work to cement a new legacy for Cardinal Thomas Wolsey in his home town. The new funding to extend the project until March 2025 has been made possible thanks to a community grant from Suffolk County Council’s £2 million Ipswich Investment fund.
The events were well attended by civic dignitaries from Ipswich, Suffolk and beyond, council staff, Wolsey 550 project partners and participants, and representatives from across Ipswich’s communities.
The Thomas Wolsey 550 Project is an initiative driven by Ipswich Central, as Founding Partner, it funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund with other organisations and businesses in Ipswich.
