Local Expert
Elouise Lavington
Passionate about storytelling, community engagement, and amplifying the voices of local initiatives. Focused on reporting impactful stories that highlight social change, grassroots efforts, and the power of connection. Always open to new ideas and collaborations!
Feature
Two deaths, no headlines: Inside Ipswich's hidden homelessness crisis
Last year, two people died while sleeping rough in Ipswich. Their deaths went unpublicised, part of a crisis affecting around a thousand people on any given night – most of them invisible in official counts.by
Elouise Lavington
Feature
Behind Suffolk's three-year autism waits, campaigners say they're in mediation with the council
With suicide rates significantly higher among autistic people, Suffolk's three-year assessment waits aren't just frustrating – campaigners say they're potentially fatal.byElouise Lavington
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Beyond the register: How local families are rethinking school
Record absence rates in Suffolk are not just about truancy. Parents here say pressure, unmet SEND needs and rigid rules are pushing children out of classrooms and, for some, into home education.byElouise Lavington
Feature
From housebound and dismissed to Westminster: The campaigner who wouldn't give up
After years of being ignored, one autistic campaigner from Ipswich has finally forced Westminster to listen.byElouise Lavington
News
New programme tackles youth exclusion through creativity
With 755 young people aged 16-17 not in education, employment or training across Suffolk and national youth reoffending rates at 32.5%, a new alternative provision programme aims to prevent vulnerable young people from falling through the cracks by reconnecting them with learning through music and creative media.byElouise Lavington
News
New platform celebrates young Ipswich changemakers
From litter picks to peer support networks, a new initiative aims to celebrate the often-overlooked contributions young people make to their communities by creating a searchable hub of youth-led action across Ipswich.byElouise Lavington
News
How Ipswich's new approach to men's mental health could change support nationwide
Suffolk Mind, MANUP?, and Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust have launched a new approach to men's mental health in Ipswich that strips away clinical jargon and stigma.byElouise Lavington
Feature
Blankets for Ipswich: Knitting together a community
In Ipswich, friends Azita Ahmadi and Amy Falla are rallying knitters and crocheters to make blankets for Lighthouse Women's Aid and Suffolk Refugee Support. What began as a practical idea has become something more: bringing people together through the simple act of making something meaningful.byElouise Lavington
News
Suffolk residents can register land as private nature reserve to help wildlife
From gardens to 12-acre plots, landowners across Suffolk are turning their spaces into private nature reserves. The network has just passed 1,000 hectares, with free support from Suffolk Wildlife Trust specialists.byElouise Lavington
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East Suffolk employers offered new disability training service
A new training programme has been launched to help East Suffolk businesses better support disabled staff and job seekers, announced as part of Disability Advice Service (East Suffolk)'s 40th anniversary celebrations.byElouise Lavington
News
Suffolk rivers under the spotlight at Ipswich talk this week
An expert from Suffolk Wildlife Trust will explain the state of Suffolk's rivers and what can be done to protect them at a public talk in Ipswich on Wednesday, 24 September.byElouise Lavington
News
Join October's Hospital Hero Hike to support patients
Walkers can sign up for the 21-mile Hospital Hero Hike on Saturday, 4 October, raising funds to support patients and staff across East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust.byElouise Lavington
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