I’m delighted to say that the final profit made by Coddenham Open Gardens and Scarecrows 2026 was a truly magnificent £3,815.22 which means that our beloved St Mary’s Church and Suffolk Accident Rescue Service (SARS) will each receive £1,907.61.

It was a fantastic day as we welcomed so many people from all across East Anglia to our beautiful village and on the day I received a call from my Husband Tony, who was manning the car park, to the effect that people were mentioning the Museum Garden and he asked what or where is this museum garden?

The answer was easy to find as right next to our community shop Roy and Ann Gudgin had not only opened up their delightful garden but had also set out artifacts from their time as shop owners, and we all know they were shop owners for a very long time so there were plenty of artifacts, and they had decided to dress up as well.

I’ve attached a picture of them both to show you how they embraced the day and welcomed everyone to their garden and on talking with Ann she said so many people came and said “Hello” and discussed the items on display.

I’ve always maintained that it’s people that make an event and Coddenham is lucky to have so many people that were willing and able to lend a hand and make a difference from opening their garden, making a scarecrow, helping in the car park, making and serving endless teas and cakes, setting out the signage and finally interacting with the visitors to showcase Coddenham and let’s not forget our very own Brenda Hudson who was undoubtedly a star on and a great sidekick when we were interviewed on BBC Radio.

Going forward I’ll tell you more tales from the day and show more pictures as well as update you all on the work of our very own SARS clinician which your efforts have helped us sponsor.

Eleanor Margaritelli