10k Frequently Asked Questions

The St Nicholas Hospice Care 10K run is a new event for 2023. Starting from Angel Hill, you will run through the iconic Abbey Gate through the beautiful Abbey Gardens, and up to Moreton Hall. The event will partly be on closed roads, but will then cross over at Mount Road onto footpaths. At the 5K point, there will be a dedicated water station. The course is undulating, so please note there are hills.

At Angel Hill, there will be an event village with music and stalls, with a fantastic atmosphere as you start the run and cross the finish line.  

This is an important fundraising event for St Nicholas Hospice Care. Did you know that St Nicholas Hospice Care costs more than £6m to run each year and more than 75% of these costs are raised by people like you? Whether that’s playing our lottery, making a donation, leaving a gift in their will or raising sponsorship for our events just like this! It is only because of you that patients and their loved ones in our local community are able to receive the support and care they need.

The event is organised in collaboration with Nice Work, a professional race management team, and it will be a UK Athletics licensed chip-timed race.

St Nicholas Hospice Care needs to raise at least £12,000 a day. The St Nicholas Hospice Care 10k run is a fundraising event, and as well as your entry fee, we ask that participants aim to raise a minimum of £100 in sponsorship. Details of how to set up a JustGiving page, and a downloadable sponsorship form will be sent to you after your registration is confirmed. Any sponsorship raised offline (such as cash or cheques) and forms should be returned to us by Wednesday, 31 January. 

The Fundraising Team at St Nicholas Hospice Care is your point of contact. We are able to support you every step of the way to give you ideas to help you reach your fundraising target.

The race starts at 10am on Sunday 8 October 2023. 

The St Nicholas Hospice Care 10k run welcomes all runners of all abilities, and therefore we don’t have strict cut-off times. We would expect to see the final finishers cross the line in 1 hour 45 minutes.

There will be a water station at the halfway point (5K).

Roads will be closed on a rolling basis. This starts from Angel Hill at 8.30am, along parts of the route, until 1pm.

Under UKA rules, headphones are no longer permitted in events that take place on roads open to traffic and runners risk disqualification if spotted wearing headphones with the exception of bone conducting headphones.

To ensure the safety of all our participants, we will work with the Palmer Group to close some of the roads for the event. We will also have our wonderful marshals with phones or radios placed in strategic positions around the course. First Aid will be based at the start/finish point and roaming along the course.

Along the route, we will have event marshals encouraging you and directing you on the course.

Please listen to their instructions and be aware that marshals can only advise motorists and do not have the power to stop traffic. Emergency vehicles will be given access to the route.

Registration is available online.

Entry for the St Nicholas Hospice Care 10k run is £20 for UKA-affiliated runners and £22 for non-UKA-affiliated runners. Entries will be available on the day, and the on-the-day entry fee will be £25.

Online entries are open until midnight on Saturday 7 October.

On the day entries are available from the registration tent on Angel Hill.

Runners who are members of a UK Athletics-affiliated running club are ‘attached’ or ‘affiliated’ runners. Some clubs don’t have a UKA affiliation, and some runners aren’t members of a club at all; if this is the case, then you are an ‘unattached’ or ‘unaffiliated’ runner. You can still enter your club name on the entry form so that it’s listed in the results, but you won’t benefit from an affiliated entry rate.

Yes, we accept group entries for eight or more runners, and there is the option to book bulk entries of up to 50 via our website. All details must be received three weeks prior to race-day.

Unfortunately, there has been a change to UKA regulations recently and wheelchairs are banned unless it’s a fully closed route like the London Marathon where no cars can get onto the route. Even with full road closures you still have the risk of a car coming out of a driveway.

Yes, you can enter multiple people when entering online or by post, provided you have all of the required details for all entrants.

Once you have registered online, you should receive an acknowledgement email confirming your entry. Should you not receive this confirmation email within 24 hours of your entry, there is a chance that it may have dropped into your junk mailbox, so please check before you contact us.

Due to the nature of the event, participants are expected to run at this event.

UK Athletics rules prohibit dogs in races. Anyone seen racing with a dog will be disqualified.

Buggies are allowed but they are not allowed to race competitively and must start at the back.

If you feel unwell or are carrying an injury, we would strongly recommend not running. If you are unsure if you are fit to run, please speak to your doctor.

If you cannot make the St Nicholas Hospice Care 10k Run, there are a number of options available, such as deferral or transfer. For full details, please visit our event terms and conditions.

Should you wish to defer your entry, please see your confirmation email for details on managing your entry. Each deferral will incur a £5 charge, and the latest you can defer your entry is up to 10am, 48 hours before the event. You are not limited to the number of deferrals you can make. If you have any further questions or need assistance, please feel free to contact the Nice Work Team on info@nice-work.org.uk.

We are unable to offer a refund on registration fees. If you are unable to participate in the event and have raised sponsorship, we suggest that you let your sponsors know. Sponsorship can be offered back although any fees incurred to St Nicholas Hospice Care from online donation pages or equivalent will be deducted first.

Yes, you may transfer your entry, free of charge, providing that your transfer is completed three weeks and one day prior to the race at 23:59. This is so that we have time to send out the bib number in time for race day. After this time, you must email info@nice-work.org.uk to arrange your transfer and it will incur a £5 charge. We will need the following information for your alternate:

• Your full name
• Full name of new runner
• Age
• Date of birth
• Address
• Email Contact
• Number of running club (if applicable)
• Emergency contact (name)
• Emergency contact (number)

Your alternate must not run without having supplied us with the above personal details or wearing an official race number. Please note that transferring your entry to somebody else without notifying us is irresponsible and dangerous, particularly in a medical emergency. Doing so can also lead to disqualification from future races. If you have booked directly through our website, then you can manage your transfer online. All you need is your original booking confirmation. 

The race will start and finish at Angel Hill, Bury St Edmunds IP33 1LT.

The what3words location is: backswing.weeks.legroom

The closest car park to Angel Hill is Ram Meadow: https://www.westsuffolk.gov.uk/parking/car_parks/bse_car_parks/ram-meadow-car-park.cfm

Other car parks in Bury St Edmunds are available: https://www.westsuffolk.gov.uk/parking/car_parks/bse_car_parks/index.cfm

Yes, toilets will be available at the start and finish points on Angel Hill. Please make sure you give yourself enough time to use them ahead of the start of your run. Unfortunately, there are no changing facilities.

Yes, we will be offering a bag drop facility. Please make sure all bags are named with your full name clearly written. Please note, items are left at runners’ own risk.

The St Nicholas Care 10K Run will be chip timed by Nice Work. They will endeavour to have live results available on the event website shortly after the event. Additionally, official results will be sent out by email during the next working day after the race.

Running packs will be posted out between 1-2 weeks before the run. Any entries registered after the postage date will need to collect their pack on the day from Angel Hill.

If you do not receive your race pack before race day, then please visit the registration desk on Angel Hill on the morning of the race and we will issue you with a new race number. If you have entered the race within ten days of the event or if you live overseas, then your race number will be waiting for you to collect on the morning of the race, and you will receive your instructions by email.

Your timing chip is incorporated into your race number and should not be removed. Please place the race number on the front of your vest/shirt and not on your leg or back. Your race number can be attached using safety pins or clips, securing it at all four corners. Please don’t attach your number to the back of your shirt as it is difficult for our timekeepers and marshals to identify you.

We are delighted to offer prizes for the top three places, fastest female (18+), fastest male (18+) and junior (15-18 years).

There is a maximum of one prize per person, and weather permitting, prize-giving normally takes place between 45 – 60 minutes after the first finisher comes home. Age categories are worked out by your age on the date of the race. Finishers will be offered a memento.