TRADERs: INFORMATION PACK
OUR VENUE
St Osyth Priory: Steeped in over 1,400 years of culture, history and legend, the Priory has been lovingly restored from a family home into a dream venue that honours its past. Nestled just five miles from Colchester in Tendring’s stunning coastal district, this magnificent country estate offers elegant versatile event space of over 350 acres for the festival to grow and for our audiences to explore. The priory’s very name recalls the miraculous martyrdom of St Osyth, whose sainthood drew pilgrims and prosperity. After surviving the Dissolution of the Monasteries, it flourished as a private estate and even welcomed Queen Elizabeth I twice during her Royal Progresses.
“THIS FESTIVAL HAS BEEN SUCH A FANTASTIC EXPERIENCE. SEEING PEOPLE ENJOY OUR PRODUCTS AND GETTING THEIR FEEDBACK IN REAL TIME HAS BEEN PRICELESS. IT'S OPENED UP NEW OPPORTUNITIES FOR US THAT WE NEVER EXPECTED...”
— Local Business Owner 2025
FEES: Food and Drink Traders
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A1: 3x3m (Rent our Gazebo)
You can rent a 3×3m gazebo from our marquee team: £250 + VAT (weekend rate)
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A2: 3x6m (Rent our Gazebo)
You can rent a 3×6m gazebo from our marquee team: £300 + VAT (weekend rate)
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B1: 3x3m (Bring your own Gazebo)
You bring your own 3×3 m gazebo: £150 + VAT (weekend rate).
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B2: 3x6m (Bring your own Gazebo)
You bring your own 3×6 m gazebo: £225 + VAT (weekend rate).
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C1: up to 3m
You bring your own food truck or horsebox (up to 3 m width): £150 + VAT (weekend)
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C2: 3 to 6m
You bring your own food truck or horsebox (3 m - 6 m): £225 + VAT (weekend)
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C3: 6m and over
You bring your own food truck or horsebox (6 m width and over): £275 + VAT (weekend)
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Power: 13a
For the weekend: £25 + VAT
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Power: 16a
For the weekend: £35 + VAT
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Power: 32a
For the weekend: £45 + VAT
FEES: Arts & Crafts Stalls
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A: 3x3m (Craft Tent)
Option A: 3x3m space & 6ft table in the craft tent - £120 + VAT for the weekend
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B: 3x3m (Bring your own Gazebo)
Option B: Bring your own 3x3m Gazebo - £80 + VAT for the weekend
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C: 3x6m (Bring your Own Gazebo)
Option C: Bring your own 3x6m Gazebo - £120 + VAT for the weekend
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Power: 13a
For the weekend: £15 + VAT
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Power: 16a
For the weekend: £25 + VAT
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Power: 32a
For the weekend: £35 + VAT
SUSTANABILITY
By supporting local businesses and producers, we are keeping our environmental impact and food miles as low as possible.
Hero Solutions are engaged to process all waste produced at the festival, from traders and visitors. They recycle 95%+ of all waste.
All fish used by traders must be MCS rated 2-3.
We promote sustainable farming techniques and innovations in food production.
Traders are not permitted to use single use plastics. Cutlery and other serveware should be made of sustainable recyclable materials.
Traders are asked to consider car sharing to reduce the travel impact of the festival.
All meat used by traders must be Red Tractor certified.
Charity Traders – 25% Discount
We’d love St Osyth Summer Sounds to be packed with amazing charities, community groups and causes that make a real difference and we want to make it easier for you to be part of the weekend.
If you’re a registered charity, you’ll receive 25% off your Trader pitch fee.
How it works (nice and simple):
Apply as normal using the appropriate Traders application form
Enter your registered charity number where requested
We’ll automatically apply the 25% discount to your application
Whether you’re fundraising, raising awareness, or both, we’d be proud to have you on site.
FAQ’s
Festival Dates:
18 & 19 July 2026
17 & 18 July 2027
15 & 16 July 2028
Festival Location:
St Osyth Priory
Clacton-on-Sea
CO16 8GW
Trading Hrs:
Sat: 12pm - 7pm
Sun: 12pm - 7pm
Do I need insurance - Yes. All traders must provide valid Public Liability Insurance and Product Liability Insurance before they will be allowed to trade. Our minimum required cover is £5 million. If you employ staff, you may also need Employers’ Liability Insurance. GOV.UK states that Employers’ Liability Insurance is required as soon as you become an employer and must cover at least £5 million.
Can I sell alcohol at the event? - Alcohol may only be sold with written approval from the event organiser and under the correct licensing arrangements. For SOSS, alcohol sales are covered under the event’s main Premises Licence. Therefore, traders must follow the licence conditions set by the organiser and licensing authority.
Do I legally need a food hygiene certificate to trade? - For this event, we require food and drink traders to provide evidence of appropriate hygiene training. As a minimum, we ask for a Level 3 Food Safety and Hygiene for Catering certificate, or higher, for the person responsible for the stall.
I only sell drinks. Do I still count as a food business? - Yes. Food safety rules apply to food and drink. Food business registration applies to businesses that sell food or drink, including those trading from a mobile unit, stall, temporary premises, online or from home.
Who is responsible for food safety on the stall? - Each trader is responsible for the safety of the food and drink they sell. You must make sure your staff understand basic hygiene, allergen controls, cleaning, safe storage and customer safety procedures. The named person responsible for the stall should be available during trading hours and should be able to show documents if requested by the organiser, venue, Environmental Health or licensing officers.
If I apply, am I guaranteed a place? - No. All applications are reviewed before places are confirmed. We carefully balance the overall trader mix across food, drink, arts and crafts to make sure there is a good variety on site. We also avoid overbooking traders with very similar offers, as this helps protect both the festival and the traders.
Our aim is to create a strong, balanced trading environment and build positive working relationships with traders, so that everyone has the best possible chance of benefiting from their time at the event.
Arrival Day - This will take place on the Friday before the festival, or Saturday morning if needed. you will be give options to select in the booking form. We highly recommend selecting the Friday slots as this will give you more time for your set up. You will be given an arrival time slot to minimise congestion and delays.
What happens if I arrive without the required documents? - Traders who have not supplied the required documents may not be allowed to trade. This is to protect customers, other traders, the event licence and the venue.
Website and social media
Web: stosythsummersounds.co.uk
Instagram: @stosythsummersounds
Facebook: stosythsummersounds
If you have specific posts/info/releases you would like us to share, please DM us on Instagram with the images and copy.
Shouting about what you do - We ask that you promote the Tendring / Essex produce you use in your products as much as possible, to spread the message of the abundance of produce in the area and the festival’s ethos to support local.
Sampling - We encourage giving out samples, but please ensure that any samples offered to the public are done so in a safe and hygienic manner.
WIFI - 4G signal is very good on site. This can be used to run your payment machines, we will also have Starlink in various places across the site, which and you are more then welcome to use it, but the range is very limited. On the Friday we will put the log in details on the Traders Community WhatsApp Group.
Trader parking - Parking for traders is free in a designated parking area.
Trader tickets - All tickets are free, we will allocate you 2 tickets once we confirm your slot, and you can book as many as you like for your staff, friends and family. We only have a ticket system to manage numbers on site, the festival is a free event for our community.
Trader toilets - Any of the toilet blocks signposted on the site map can be used by traders.