Every other year, our family of churches, Catalyst, hold a festival to spend time together in the presence of God. You can find out more about it here. This year, we’d love to attend the festival together as New Life Church, and invest in our church community, while joining in with the wider Catalyst Festival too.

The festival is from Saturday, 23rd May 2026 from 1.00pm until Tuesday, 26th May 2026 at lunchtime. Guests typically arrive on Saturday lunchtime/afternoon, before enjoying an opening session that evening. People then take part in events over Sunday and Monday, and the festival concludes with a final morning meeting on Tuesday before departure at lunchtime/early afternoon. 

The venue is the Norfolk Showground & Events Centre on Dereham Road, Norwich NR5 0TT, United Kingdom. Access for all attendees will be via the Red Gate. As you get closer to the showground, road-side signs will direct you. Please do not try to enter through any other gates.

A typical day at the festival includes:  

• A morning Bible study 

• A main celebration meeting, including sessions for kids and youth  

• An afternoon programme of content and fun activities 

• A main evening meeting, including sessions for older kids and youth  

• An after-hours late-night programme until 11.00pm     

This enables plenty of time to spend with each other around our campsite as well. 

More information on the meetings and timings will be available in due course. 

No, there will be day tickets available nearer to the event if you are unable to stay for the whole time or you would prefer to only come for a day visit. Keep an eye on the Catalyst website for these to go on sale (we expect these will be released in March 2026). 

The Catalyst Festival has numerous different provisions for children and youth so they can join in the fun too:

• 0–2 years = parent and baby space in the morning

• 3–4 years = Morning sessions

• School years reception–year 2 = Morning sessions

• School years 3–6 = Morning and evening sessions

• School years 7–11 = Morning and evening sessions

You can also definitely camp with children, and you can find some hints and tips from Parenting for Faith on camping with little ones. Alternatively, you could also book accommodation offsite and drive onsite each day if that would be easier for you. This doesn’t reduce the ticket cost at all but for some this will still be a very appealing option!

We will also be setting aside some space in our marquee for people to play with their children, so that it’s possible for people to be undercover and together, even if the weather isn’t great.

We looked thoroughly into the possibility of providing a range of different bolt-on packages, from catering to coaches, but it’s not something we’re going to be able to provide this time.

Instead, we’re going to be focusing on how we can come together as a community for the event with shared experience, equipment, eating spaces, etc. More on this below.

To enable us to build our own New Life community within the Catalyst Festival, we’ll be providing a large marquee with round tables and chairs for 120 people (like the youth have at Newday, see image at the bottom of this page), where we’ll all be able to congregate throughout the weekend.

This will enable things like:  

• Preparing meals separately, while we encourage coming together to eat in the marquee, which will be set up in round tables that fit 10 people 

• use of a communal fridge in the marquee to make camping life that bit easier  

• access to tea and coffee-making facilities, and small snacks, in the marquee

• access to power for charging phones (please note, only phone chargers are allowed, nothing else – no hair dryers/straighteners, please!) 

• access to communal board games and crafts to be able to spend time with others while at our camp  

This event is about coming together as community, and we’ll try to make the most of shared experience when it comes to camping life, so no matter if you’re a novice or first-timer, we’ll help equip you in order for all to have a great experience. If you have any camping experience or equipment, please let us know if you may be able to support those with less experience or in need of borrowing items. We will be setting up a WhatsApp group to share tips, equipment, and support one another for all those signed up for the Big Weekend Away.  

Yes, absolutely! Please don’t let finances be the reason that you don’t come. Please email Katie Garsideor call the office on 01908 224580 and speak to a member of New Life staff about the options available if finances are a barrier to you attending. 

The standard accommodation included in the festival ticket price is camping. Please note, there is no equipment provided in the ticket price, it is just the hire of the campsite on which to pitch your tent that is included.  

You can hire a tent through Catalyst by contacting IBEX Camping on 01480 404030 or sayhello@ibexcamping.co.uk. 

There is also the option to stay offsite and ‘commute’ to the site each day. This doesn’t reduce the ticket cost, and you’d need to pay for the cost of your accommodation on top of your ticket price, but this is still a very appealing option for some! 

Don’t worry, if you have never camped before, there’s a first time for everything! We recommend some basic essentials that you can buy or borrow to bring with you if you would like to camp:

• A tent (you can hire a tent through Catalyst by contacting IBEX Camping on 01480 404030 or sayhello@ibexcamping.co.uk), including poles and pegs

• An air bed and pump

• A sleeping bag and pillow

• A camping chair if you are wanting to sit outside next to your tent (while a child is sleeping, for example)

• A torch/camping lamp

• Toiletries and a towel

• A water bottle

• Some things to make food (a camping stove, fuel, lighter, pan, cutlery and crockery. More on this below)

• Some basic washing-up equipment – liquid, sponge, tea towel

• Any medication you or your family might need

• Sun protection

• Clothing, including waterproofs in case it rains, and warm layers (evenings can be cold, even in May!)

• A small day bag/backpack (for meetings – water bottle, Bible, jumper, etc.)

• Pyjamas/sleepwear

• Sturdy footwear (trainers or walking shoes – you will do lots of walking around the showground)

• Flip-flops or sliders (for the showers)

• Wet wipes/hand sanitiser

• Phone charger/battery pack

• Bin bags

There is also the option to stay offsite, so you can book a hotel room or an Airbnb, and then travel on to the showground each day.

And whether you’re camping or not, don’t forget your Bible, Notebook and Pen!

Please do contact us if you would like any support around camping and we can suggest people who might be able to offer advice and/or equipment. We can also add you to a WhatsApp group for mutual support and community before and during the event.

Yes, absolutely, please select this accommodation option when booking your festival ticket.

There are, but not for tents. You can purchase a caravan/motorhome electric hook-up which will be supplied as a 16A connection, but is solely for caravans/motorhomes. 

Please book any power connections by 28th February 2026. You can do this as an add-on when booking your festival ticket. 

As a church, we are allocated a pitch size based on the number of people attending, the types and sizes of tents or caravans, and our shared marquee.

To make sure everyone fits safely on our allocated pitch and that we comply with fire regulations (including required fire gaps between tents), we will need to assign specific pitches to each booking. These allocations will be finalised before we travel to the festival.

If you need to be pitched next to another booking – for example, if you are cooking together, or for another essential reason only – please let us know as soon as possible. We will do our best to accommodate requests, although this may not always be possible.

Yes, toilet and shower facilities are provided onsite by the festival. These are shared facilities and may involve a short walk from our camp area. 

You are welcome to cook at your tent using a personal camping stove designed for outdoor use.  

Stoves must be used safely, never left unattended, and fully switched off and cooled before being stored. Gas canisters and bottles should be stored securely, away from heat sources, naked flames, and direct sunlight, and must not be kept inside sleeping areas. 

All gas bottles, in use or not, must be stored securely in a well-ventilated area and on a firm base. 

Please bring only the amount of gas reasonably needed for personal use during the festival and ensure all equipment is in good working order and used in line with manufacturer guidance. Fire gaps between tents must be kept clear at all times, and all instructions from camp leaders or festival stewards must be followed. For safety reasons, any equipment being used unsafely may be removed. 

If you plan to cook with another person/family and need to be pitched nearby, please let us know as early as possible and we will do our best to accommodate you where space and safety regulations allow. 

Neither charcoal nor wood barbecues, nor any open flames, are permitted anywhere onsite. 

Cooking is not permitted in the marquee, which is for eating and shared activities only. 

No gas bottles will be available to purchase onsite. 

Onsite, there will be a variety of food vendors who historically have sold different types of fast food, and Catalyst usually operates cafés that offer a range of café-type food and drink. Norfolk Showground is also home to Norfolk Food Hall: a farm shop, café and restaurant selling lots of local produce and many essentials. The Food Hall can be accessed via a pedestrian only gate in the North-East of the site, which will be open daily from 8.30am–6.00pm (10.00am–4.00pm on Sunday). 

Beyond the site, there are several local shops, including Sainsbury’s in Longwater Retail Park, a short distance from the Showground. Further afield there are shops such as ALDI, Makro and Booker. Please do not attempt to leave the site on foot as there are no safe pedestrian walking routes and the area is full of busy A roads. 

If ordering a takeaway food delivery to the site, you must meet the delivery at the gate as the driver will not be allowed access to the site. 

There are no cash machines onsite. 

Extra shelters, such as gazebos, are generally not permitted, as space is limited and fire regulations apply. Please check with us before bringing any additional structures.

You can bring a separate cooking tent, but please make sure you select the number and size of tents accurately when booking your tickets or we won’t be allocated enough space for it on our site.

In the interests of safety and site flow the site will be car free for the duration of the event. Therefore, all vehicles are to be moved to the Main Car Park following unloading, by no later than the start of the evening meeting on Saturday 23rd May. Cars not moved from the campsite by this time may be removed. Vehicles are left in the car park at the owner’s risk. The car park will not be locked at night. 

Day visitors and those staying offsite will park in a separate car park and be required to check-in at the pedestrian gate to gain access to the site. 

Alcohol

Alcohol is permitted onsite but must be consumed in moderation and strictly by over 18s. Any anti-social or dangerous behaviour resulting from intoxication or the presence of illegal drinking will not be tolerated and will result in ejection from the site without refund or compensation. 

Security

The festival will be operating as a closed site. Wristbands will be assigned to delegates on arrival and will be checked on entrance to the site and all festival venues. The Main Gate will be manned from 7.30am–11.30pm. All gates will be locked outside of these times. 

What happens if the weather is bad?

The festival goes ahead in all weathers. Please come prepared for rain, wind, or sun by bringing appropriate clothing, footwear, and waterproofs. 

Accessibility

There are accessible toilets and showers located in some of the amenity blocks – they will be marked on the site map for the event. 

We expect large print copies of key event materials to be available on request from the Information Point at the event.  

BSL interpretation will be available during sessions, on request. 

If you have any more questions, please do not hesitate to contact Katie Garside or call the office on 01908 224580.