This year's local council elections are set to be the most significant for a generation as seats on all district and borough councils are up for grabs.

A third of the seats on Ipswich Borough Council are up for election - as they are every year - and all the seats on East Suffolk, West Suffolk, Mid Suffolk and Babergh are set to be contested.

And given the state of opinion polls and recent by-elections there is speculation that this year's poll could be the most interesting since the mid-1990s.

When these seats were last contested in 2019 the Conservatives were able to form majority administration in the two biggest councils - East Suffolk and West Suffolk.

In Mid Suffolk they held power only by virtue of the chair's casting vote - a situation that has persisted since then.

In Babergh - where party politics has never been a central element of its administration - the council is currently run by a coalition of Independents, Independent Conservatives, and other smaller groups.

Ipswich is run by a Labour administration and only a third of its seats are up for election. It is a mathematical impossibility for Labour to lose control this year.

This year's elections take place on Thursday, May 4. That is two days before the Coronation.

But the election clock in Suffolk starts ticking this week.

East Suffolk publishes its Notice of Poll on Thursday, March 16, which is seen as the formal launch of the election campaign. 

West Suffolk publishes its Notice of Poll next Wednesday, March 22, while those for Babergh, Mid Suffolk and Ipswich are published the following day.

Publishing Notices of Election means that councils are not able to engage in political activity - starting a period know as "purdah".

This affects all local authorities, even those with no elections - so there is no political activity at Suffolk County Council even though its members are not up for election.

The next significant date is April 4 - that is the deadline for candidates to be nominated to fight the election.

The last day you can register to vote is April 17 and the last day you can apply for a postal vote is April 18.

One big change this year is that those who vote in person at a polling station will have to show voter identification - this can be a driving licence, passport, or other photo identification.

A major information campaign is planned to explain this.

Those who vote by post will continue to be send ballot papers if they have are registered for them.

Polling day is Thursday, May 4 with polling stations open from 7am to 10pm. 

Ipswich will be counting its votes as soon as possible after polls close in the Corn Exchange - the final results are usually declared between 1am and 2am on the Friday morning.

All the other councils are counting on Friday from 9am.

East Suffolk's votes are being counted at the Waterlane Leisure Centre in Lowestoft. West Suffolk will be counted at the Bury St Edmunds Leisure Centre and Babergh and Mid Suffolk's count will be held at Wherestead Park on the edge of Ipswich.

All the results are due to be declared during the afternoon of Friday, May 9.

But that might not be the end of the election - if the polls are right the Conservatives could well lose their majorities in several councils as they did in 1995.

That could open the door to coalition talks and possible deals between rival parties throughout the national festivites for the King's Coronation Bank Holiday weekend.