The East Anglian Daily Times and Ipswich Star are launching a series of live events inviting readers into our newsroom to discuss the biggest issues affecting their communities.
We will be opening up the newsroom for hour-long conversations involving the public, our journalists and representatives of local groups and organisations.
The first of these 'Open House' events takes place on Thursday, March 5, at 10am, and will discuss the impact of knife crime and county lines in Suffolk, the root causes, and how they are being tackled.
Among those on the panel will be a senior Suffolk police officer, the county's Police and Crime Commissioner Tim Passmore, and Earl Ling, from the St Giles Trust, which works proactively with children in areas affected by youth violence and knife crime.
We encourage any individuals or organisations with an interest in the topic to come along. All views are welcome and everyone will be heard as we delve deeper into the topics which most affect local people.
There will be limited capacity for each event, and people must book their free space using these links:
- EADT Open House - Knife crime and county lines: Thursday March 5, 10am
- EADT Open House - What's the solution to Ipswich's traffic problems?: Thursday April 9, 10am
- EADT Open House - Loneliness in Suffolk - what needs to be done?: Thursday May 7, 10am
The second discussion will be around Ipswich's traffic problems - a constant bugbear for so many people in the town.
With the northern bypass seemingly off the agenda for now, our event on Thursday April 9 will be asking what the possible solutions are, and what the powers-that-be should be doing.
And then on May 7, we will be holding an Open House event looking at the issue of loneliness and social isolation in Suffolk.
While there are many fantastic initiatives tackling this - such as MeetUpMondays - will be examining the huge health impacts and how Suffolk can do more to help those who are isolated.
For each event, we will have expert panellists. Free refreshments will also be available.
Details of further Open House events will be released throughout the year. There will be more in our newsroom, at Portman House, 120 Princes Street, but also others at different venues across the county.
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