All roads lead to one Suffolk council...unless county leader finds another

Suffolk's two-tier system is almost certainly finished, and a single county-wide authority is the likeliest replacement. But the county council's leader is not ready to accept that the choice is limited to the two business cases already sitting on ministers' desks.

Suffolk's police commissioner rejects 'mega force'

Suffolk's police and crime commissioner has thrown his weight behind a merger with Norfolk, warning he would go "over my dead body" to stop Suffolk being swallowed into a larger eastern region alongside Essex, Cambridgeshire, Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire.

Ipswich Poundland store at risk as chain nears collapse

The Poundland store in Ipswich's Sailmakers centre could be at risk after the discount retailer's US owner moved towards appointing administrators, threatening thousands of jobs nationwide.

The double Olympic gold medalist who never was

He wrote some of Britain’s best-loved songs, entertained troops during the Second World War and died in Ipswich. Decades later came the extraordinary discovery that he had secretly won two Olympic gold medals – except he had not.

Fire chief warns more funding needed to avoid Dunwich repeat

Suffolk's chief fire officer has told a Parliamentary committee that extra funding is needed to prevent another wildfire like the one that tore through Dunwich Heath in July.

Ipswich mum swaps wealth management for garden design

Lucy Howard spent the early hours in her vegetable patch with “the robins and the sunrise” while struggling with postnatal depression. Now she has swapped wealth management for her own garden design business.

Bikers raise £5,191 for Ipswich Hospital cancer care

Motorcyclists, volunteers, supporters and local businesses came together for the Richard Collins Charitable Ride, raising more than £5,000 to support patients receiving cancer treatment at Ipswich Hospital.

Suffolk families split over how to divide gifted money

Nearly half of adults across Suffolk, Essex and Norfolk believe money given by parents or grandparents should be judged on a case-by-case basis if family circumstances change, according to new research.

What the 2026 Budget means for Ipswich

A £100 energy payment, a bigger break on business rates and another rise in the minimum wage – John Healey's first Budget reaches into almost every household and high street business in Ipswich. Here is who gains, who pays, and what people in the town make of it.

Anti-social drinking powers set for three-year extension

Ipswich Borough Council is set to decide whether to keep its powers to tackle anti-social drinking in public for another three years, after 60 of 61 consultation respondents backed the move.

Discount retailer and supermarket to fill Carr Street shops

Two Carr Street shops have been let to new tenants, with national discount retailer Bargain World opening its first Suffolk store and an "independent supermarket" taking over the former Betfred unit.

Free NHS health checks on offer at Ipswich Cornhill today

The Be Well Bus is on the Cornhill throughout today, Wednesday, 28 October 2026, offering free blood pressure, height, weight and BMI checks for anyone who visits.

Former C&A department store goes on the market for £2 million

One of Ipswich's largest town centre shops is being offered for sale or rent, raising questions about its future. But the former C&A building on Upper Brook Street has a story that stretches far beyond its current occupant, Poundstretcher. From childhood shopping trips to a much-loved rocking horse.

How Ipswich plans to spend £1.25m to tackle rough sleeping

Extra emergency beds this winter, a seven-day cap on stays, more Housing First support and CCTV in rough sleeping hot spots are among the measures in a new plan to tackle rough sleeping, which also sets out how Ipswich will use its share of the Government's £442m Rough Sleeping Programme.

Repeat antisocial offenders face bans and treatment under Respect Orders

Police, councils and housing associations have a new tool to tackle persistent antisocial behaviour (ASB) after Respect Orders came into force this week.

Pollution falls around Star Lane while two areas remain near legal limit

Ipswich Borough Council's executive will decide on Tuesday, 3 November, whether to revoke the air quality management area covering Star Lane and surrounding streets, after nitrogen dioxide levels stayed below the legal limit for three years - but two other parts of town remain close to it.

Apprentice's award caps hat-trick of wins for Ipswich firm

Charlie Dando, 22, from Boxford, has followed two colleagues in winning the same prestigious apprenticeship award, after judges praised his drive to mentor others and champion sustainability.

Suffolk college students offered £1,000 to study locally

Students at three Suffolk college groups could get guaranteed university offers and a £1,000 payment under new agreements designed to ease the cost of higher education closer to home.

The 1.4 million tonnes of sand and gravel beneath Ipswich's proposed new housing estate

Plans for 1,200 homes at Foxhall Road have revealed an extraordinary quantity of potentially valuable minerals beneath the site. But the developer's own consultants say extracting them first would be impractical. Ipswich.co.uk examines what lies below the surface and why it matters.

Ipswich law firm shortlisted for four national awards

Attwells Solicitors has been named a finalist in four categories at the 2026 LEAP Modern Law Conveyancing Awards, with winners announced in November.

Mezzle collapses two years after Gotelee takeover

Two years after promising to modernise historic Ipswich firm Gotelee Solicitors, self-styled legal 'disruptor' Mezzle has collapsed into administration – having closed two of Gotelee's offices within a year of taking over.

Sizewell C apprentice numbers pass 150 milestone

Sizewell C now has 166 apprentices, 111 of them from Suffolk - putting the nuclear power station past 10% of its pledge to recruit at least 1,500 apprentices during construction.

£219m roads boost not enough, says Suffolk council

Suffolk County Council could receive up to £219.4m from the Government over the next four years to maintain its roads, but says the sum still falls short of what's needed to keep the county's highways in a steady state.

Suffolk Police to test drivers' eyesight in roadside crackdown

Suffolk Police will carry out roadside vision screenings over the next fortnight, checking motorists can read a number plate from 20 metres as part of a national road safety drive.