MacDonald survives Reform surge as Labour lose nine Ipswich seats

Council leader Neil MacDonald has held his St Johns seat, but Labour has lost 9 of the 13 seats it was defending on Ipswich Borough Council, with Reform UK taking 10 in a result that reshapes the political map of the town.

Reform takes majority control of Suffolk County Council, instructed to only speak to GB News

Reform UK has taken control of the authority for the first time, ending nearly two decades of near-continuous Conservative rule.

Elections Live: Reform wins Suffolk County Council and wins 10 of 16 seats in Borough election

Welcome to Ipswich.co.uk's live coverage of the 2026 local elections. We shall be bringing you all the action live from the Town Hall in Ipswich. The page will automatically refresh when we update it.

Ipswich paedophile jailed for 40 months over sexual communication with 14-year-old decoy

A 37-year-old Ipswich man has been sentenced to more than three years in prison after sending sexual messages and an explicit image to a decoy social media account he believed belonged to a 14-year-old girl.

Police issue new closure notice to Romanian Buttermarket shop

Suffolk Constabulary has issued a fresh closure notice to Magazin Bacau Romanian Supermarket on Ipswich's Buttermarket – just six weeks after magistrates refused to grant a full closure order against the same premises.

Reform projected to take Suffolk – but modellers urge caution

As polling stations open across Ipswich and Suffolk, a detailed pre-election projection points to a dramatic political shift at Endeavour House — but the modellers behind the numbers are the first to flag the limits of what they can tell us.

Polls open as Ipswich votes in two elections today

Polling stations across Ipswich opened at 07:00 this morning as voters head to the ballot box to decide who will represent them on Suffolk County Council and Ipswich Borough Council, with results expected by Friday afternoon.

New illuminated sign going up at University of Suffolk

The University of Suffolk is installing a new illuminated sign on its Waterfront Building as part of a broader programme of campus improvements that also includes a new library, a student hub, and a pharmacy course launching in September.

East of England Co-op posts £2m profit in third year of growth

The East of England Co-op has reported an underlying trading profit of £2m for the year ended 24 January 2026, marking its third consecutive year of profit growth and a £1m improvement on the previous year.

Meet the candidate: Paul Anderson

Paul Anderson is standing for Labour in Bixley ward at the Ipswich Borough Council elections on Thursday, 7 May. We sent every candidate the same five questions — here are Paul's answers, published in full and unedited.

'It gave us time to just be together': Family's plea for Ipswich garden

A family's experience of saying goodbye to a loved one in a peaceful hospital garden has inspired a fundraising appeal to bring the same comfort to patients at Ipswich Hospital.

Five parties, two ballots: The fight for Ipswich

With polling day just two days away, voters in Ipswich face a choice between five parties offering sharply different visions for the town and county. Here is where each one stands on the issues likely to decide how Suffolk is run for the next two years.

How Ipswich changed the conversation on endometriosis

Eighteen months ago, no one was listening. Today, Ipswich women with endometriosis have been to Parliament, they are educating employers and slowly changing the misunderstandings of endometriosis – and they are just getting started.

Exhibition showcases 130 years of women's football in Suffolk

An exhibition exploring over a century of women's football in Suffolk is on display at Felixstowe Museum, celebrating the heritage of the women's game in the county.

Suffolk's first-ever Festival of Nature

Suffolk Wildlife Trust is launching the county's first-ever Festival of Nature, with events spanning music, literature, visual arts and history taking place across Suffolk from 20 September to 11 October.

Ipswich chippy goes fishing for a new owner

Ocean Fish & Chips on Felixstowe Road has been put up for sale as a going concern, with the leasehold business listed at an asking price of £19,999.

Thousands line streets to celebrate Town promotion

Ipswich came to a standstill on Monday as supporters lined the streets to celebrate Ipswich Town's return to the Premier League, just two days after Kieran McKenna's side sealed automatic promotion with a 3-0 win over QPR.

Town promoted to Premier League with 3-0 win over QPR

A 3-0 home win over Queens Park Rangers sent Ipswich Town back to the Premier League on Saturday. Watching from the West Stand, columnist Barbara Norrey captures the blue smoke, the pitch invasion and the disbelief of the afternoon Town went up.

Ipswich paedophile jailed after 15,000 child abuse messages found

A 60-year-old registered sex offender from Ipswich has been jailed for two years after police uncovered thousands of messages relating to child sexual abuse and indecent images of children on his phone.

Ipswich's rental market braces for the biggest shake-up in a generation

From today, renters in Ipswich gain protections that campaigners have fought for over a decade. Landlords say the changes leave them dangerously exposed. We help you make sense of it all.

SEND school seeks retrospective permission after six years on Nacton Road site

A specialist school for children with special educational needs has applied for retrospective planning permission to continue operating from an industrial building in Nacton Road, where it has run since 2019.

'Don't panic, but act promptly' – legal expert on Ross Coates closure

A senior solicitor at one of the town's largest law firms has spoken out about the unsettling impact on clients when a local solicitor's firm closes, following the Solicitors Regulation Authority's intervention at Ross Coates Solicitors on Tuesday.

Meet the candidate: Kelvin Cracknell

Kelvin Cracknell is standing for Labour & Co-operative in the Gainsborough Division at the Suffolk County Council elections on Thursday, 7 May. We sent every candidate the same five questions — here are Kelvin's answers, published in full and unedited.

Grimwades adult education centre gets planning green light

Plans to transform the first floor of the former Grimwades building into an adult education centre have been unanimously approved by Ipswich councillors, paving the way for the hub to open this September.