Open Cambridge 2024

Open Cambridge will take place from Friday 6 September 2024 to Sunday 15 September 2024, and highlights stories of Cambridge and the surrounding area.

Over 70 free events have been organised, across a week-long celebration of our community, heritage and history.

It provides an inclusive platform to showcase extraordinary spaces, places and people, and gives residents a chance to look around spaces not normally open to the public.

The full programme for Open Cambridge 2024 can be viewed by tapping here.

Below are some of the highlights:

Join Cambridge Access Surgery for a special event exploring their garden and art gallery on September 7. During the event, you will have the chance to wander through the co-created garden, carefully tended by program participants. The art gallery will showcase a diverse array of works created by local artists and members of the CAS community, with a focus on nature and wellbeing. Each piece reflects the therapeutic and inspiring aspects of the natural world, emphasizing the importance of rootedness and interconnectedness for personal and communal health.

A new exhibition unveiled earlier this year tells the incredible story of Newnham College women’s war work, at Bletchley Park and beyond. More than 70 students and alumnae were secretly recruited for World War Two codebreaking work at Bletchley Park, thanks partly to the personal connections of three Newnham women, Alda Milner-Barry, former Principal Pernel Strachey and Ray Strachey. Explore the lives of these extraordinary women in this special exhibition during September.

Cambridge Rape Crisis Centre was founded by volunteers 42 years ago and to this day, they are a crucial part of the organisation. Discover the important work the centre undertakes and how the Cambridge Rape Crisis Centre came to be; from the global and national context that prompted women in the city to create the centre to the challenges faced in the present. This online talk is an exciting opportunity to learn more about CRCC and the incredible work the volunteers do and about how to join as a volunteer.

A exhibition in the library of Sidney Sussex College will display the Candia Skull. Found in Crete and given to the College by a Rotherhithe Sea captain in 1627, it has been described as the earliest fossilised human skull to reach an English collection. Come along and learn more about some of the findings of recent scientific investigation on the 6/7 September between 10am-4pm.

Drop into the Department of Earth Sciences on Sunday 7 September between 10am-4pm, and discover an impressive display of building stones, roofing slates, road stones, flagstones and decorative and ornamental stones that were used extensively throughout Britain and globally during the 19th and early 20th centuries. The display is part of a collection of 2500 specimens given to the Sedgwick Museum of Earth Sciences by John Watson (1842-1918), who worked in the Portland Cement industry. Free, brief introductory talks will be available, on the hour, on a drop-in basis. Staff and volunteers will be present throughout the day to discuss the gallery.

Westminster College is thrilled to open its gates and welcome the public on 15 September between 10am-4pm. Visitors will have the unique opportunity to explore the stunning Westminster Campus, including the newly inaugurated Woolf Building. Stroll through our lovely lawns, take in the serene atmosphere of the chapel, and marvel at the fantastic library. Don’t miss the now-famous Assembly Room and the awe-inspiring Dining Hall, both highlights of the campus. Whether you're a history enthusiast or simply curious about the college, you can embark on a self-guided tour with our informative leaflets or join one of three exclusive guided tours led by the College’s archivist.

All Saint’s Church on Jesus Lane, known as the Painted Church, is one of Cambridge’s hidden gems. Over two weekends, the public are invited to admire the hand-painted walls and take in an informal tour by volunteers (7/8 September) and admire some exquisite vestments and embroideries by Watts&Co (14/15 September). The works in this exhibition will give visitors a better appreciation of and connection with church textiles over the 150 years of Watt's existence. 

Connect Cambridge past and Cambridge present and explore the Grade II listed Histon Road Cemetery. On Sunday 15 September volunteers from the Friends of Histon Cemetery will be offering historical and wildlife tours or you can just enjoy a walk through the cemetery and discover the stories of the people who are buried there. Either way, come along and enjoy the best surviving example of a Victorian "garden cemetery". 

The Cambridge Buddhist Centre will be open to the public on Saturday 7 September. There will be tours of the Grade II listed Festival Theatre, one of only two of its kind in the UK. There will also be an opportunity to experience what the Buddhist Centre has to offer, including meditation and wellbeing taster sessions.

The full programme for Open Cambridge 2024 can be viewed by tapping here.