Thousands of people attended the UK Ijtima over four days at Shrubland Park in Barham. The ijtima, a gathering for prayer together and teachings, drew a large crowd to a private estate near Ipswich and required organisers to stay on site throughout.
The event had been described by Shrubland Estate as a spiritual development and community values, not a political event or protest
. Large tents were built to give people sleeping quarters, prayer spaces, eating areas and stages for the lectures, while crowds and traffic were managed all day.
Shrubland Park in Barham
Three venues were shortlisted before Shrubland Estate was chosen: London ExCel, NEC Birmingham and Shrubland Estate. Agreements were not reached at the larger city venues, and the gathering was then held at Shrubland Park in Barham for the full four days.
During the event, organisers were onsite to communicate with the local council, police and visitors. A Mid Suffolk Council spokeswoman had previously said no activities at the event required a licence, which left the organisers to manage the site as a temporary gathering rather than as a licensed programme.
Ruman Muhith at the event
Councillor Ruman Muhith said he had the opportunity to attend the UK Ijtima at Shrubland Estate on both Friday and Saturday. He said attendees did so in a respectful and orderly manner, and added: I had the opportunity to attend the UK Ijtima at Shrubland Estate on both Friday and Saturday, and I was pleased to see first-hand a well-organised, peaceful and professionally managed event.
People of all ages and nationalities were present, and the scale of the gathering meant crowd and traffic management became part of the event’s daily routine. The most immediate unanswered point is the exact attendance figure, but the four-day stay at Shrubland Park already shows why the site drew close coordination between organisers, Mid Suffolk Council and police.
