Tourist Guides Visit Ipswich

Biennial Conference for East Anglian Tourist Guides

The Ipswich Tourist Guides' Association hosted this prestigious meeting of Guides from Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, St Albans and Bedford on 2Apri120ll. The venue was the roof garden of the Willis Building and the theme of the conference was 'Reflections on the Past, Present and Future'. The Mayor, Councillor Jane Chambers, welcomed the Guides.

Our keynote speaker was Dr John Blatchly who reflected on 'Thomas Wolsey, Ipswich's Greatest Man'. Jo Leah, our guest speaker from Ipswich Building Society, spoke of the present and future in terms of 'Identifying New Markets from a Business Perspective'. Between them they provided fascinating insights into Ipswich. In the afternoon, a choice of three guided walks was available and Ipswich looked its best in glorious spring sunshine (and temperatures reaching 20°C!) From the feedback it is clear that our town made a favourable impression on our visitors. Many expressed delight and surprise at what we have to offer. Clearly, Ipswich has much to be proud of and we feel privileged to be able to show off our heritage on occasions such as this.

Diana Lewis