Whoever forms the next government needs to be prepared for the reality of being in power. The job begins almost as soon as the votes have been counted.

So what is it like to go from opposition to government overnight? How do civil servants get ready for the possibility of a transition of power or a hung parliament? And what is it like for a governing party to continue in power after a bruising campaign?

In this six-part series, the Institute for Government takes you behind the scenes to find out how our politicians, their advisers and officials block out the noise of a general election campaign to get ready for being in government. We’ll be speaking to former ministers, special advisers and senior civil servants to discover how they prepared for that all important election result and its aftermath, to hear their secrets, and to work out the lessons for 2024.