Sage Summer Party

We received a flyer through the door the other day inviting us to Sage‘s Summer Party as their head office on the Great Park. We’d been to one a few years ago and it was a pleasant afternoon out. Our diary was empty… what could be more fun than a party organised by an accountancy software company?

Sage Summer Party

Our invite was posted through the doors of residents of the Great park and was limited to a family of 5 (although I doubt they would have turned you away for having more kids!).

We’re throwing a Summer Party and would love for you to come along. A day of fun, food, music and rides for you and the family* to enjoy – and the best bit is… it’s free!

We were excited to do something locally, but add onto the end of that FREE!
The party we went to a few years back was relatively small scale. It had a few food stalls, a couple of fairground stalls and rides, so we had an idea of what to expect. However we were so so wrong. The event seems to have evolved to a larger gathering and setup.

As we walked around the corner from the Great Park park and Ride the volume of the live music was bellowing over the shrubbery. As we walked through the entry we were handed a voucher upon entrance to be redeemed at a food truck for a free meal, there was also a voucher for a free soft drink, ice cream or snack.

The Sage Summer Party was massive. Beyond the entry it sprawled over to the left and the right. On the right hand side was a live event stage, with a Live band opposite a beer tent. The far end of the area had around 8 different food trucks, offering Pizza and chips, Fish and Chips, Burgers, German Sausage, Chinese Noodles and more. Sage provided the cans and bottles of soft drink.

Inside the atrium of Sage were a collection of craft and local produce stalls. Here you could buy chilli sauce, boxes of Chocolate, American sweets and more. As we passed through, I couldn’t help noticing the chilli sauce stall. Aptly named Bernie Bumm Hot Sauce.

To the left of the entrance was a huge collection of fairground attractions, side shows and more. Everything you’d expect to see in a miniaturised version of the Hoppings, but for free.

Cat got a little excited when she spotted the ferris wheel and couldn’t resist dragging some kids on it with her.

We hung around to watch the Frozen show on the Live Stage and before we knew it, it was time to start packing up. We had a fantastic day, the atmosphere was brilliant and this party has evolved into a massive undertaking. We really appreciated the effort and cost that went to the event, even more so that neither of us work for Sage. Yet Sage have opened up their arms to the local residents. So we’d like to thank them for including us.

The Sage Foundation were collecting donation for Cancer Research UK, a charity that they have supported for a number of years. During the Summer Party a spokesman for CRUK announced that Sage was so close to have raised £500,000 in donations for the charity.