Commitment to the community is what makes a local paper

A LOCAL newspaper wouldn’t be worthy of the title were it not to include a community section for residents to talk about what matters to them.
The 

VE Day street party at Nettlecombe Avenue, Southsea. 

Picture: Paul Jacobs (150510-4)The 

VE Day street party at Nettlecombe Avenue, Southsea. 

Picture: Paul Jacobs (150510-4)
The VE Day street party at Nettlecombe Avenue, Southsea. Picture: Paul Jacobs (150510-4)

From updates on the village fete to local views on national issues, the community section is the heart of the community paper.

The News has maintained its commitment to providing its readers with a voice by including a comprehensive set of community pages with each edition.

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With separate community editions for Havant and Waterlooville, Gosport, Fareham, and Portsmouth, The News is proud to ensure that every area has its own coverage.

Editor Mark Waldron said: ‘Community news is at the heart of what we do as a local paper. If it matters to our readers it matters to us and we do our best to make sure we cover the things that are important to the people we serve.

‘Our community pages ensure that we deliver tailored news to each of the areas we cover and that is crucial for a paper that aims to keep the community as informed as possible.

‘Although we try to make sure readers are told about what is important, we also try to make sure they are told about what is important to them.’

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The News also received the Community Initiative Award at the Johnston Press Awards for its journalism training initiative in partnership with Highbury College.

The pioneering scheme, known as the ‘classroom within a newsroom’, offers the chance for students on the one-year diploma in journalism to learn from reporters at The News and have stories published in the paper while receiving top quality professional training with Highbury College, which is rated outstanding by Ofsted.

This was the first programme of its kind anywhere in the country and stands as a testament to the newspaper’s commitment to supporting the community.

As long as the news keeps going, so too will the paper continue to provide coverage of what matters to its readers and stay true to its belief that the news is ‘all about you’.