The shortlist for the Regional Press Awards for 2022 is published today with 136 journalists and publishers in contention for the top prizes.
As previously reported, the Awards have been relaunched this year by Haymarket plc and the News Media Association in partnership with HoldtheFrontPage, with the ceremony due to take place in London on 8th March 2023.
Topping the ‘league table’ for the number of nominations on today’s shortlist are Reach plc’s Wales Online, with 14, and the Belfast Telegraph, now owned by Mediahuis with 11
Just behind is Scottish daily The Herald with ten, although some of these are shared with Newsquest sister titles the Herald on Sunday and Glasgow Times.
Unsurprinsgly Reach’s big city titles also figure strongly in the list, with the Manchester Evening News on seven nominations, the Liverpool Echo seven, and the Birmingham Masil/Birmingham Live on six.
The independent and hyperlocal sector are represented by the Camden New Journal with two nominations, and the Islington Tribune and Altrincham Today with one each.
HTFP has partnered with Haymarket to help promote the awards and will once again be sponsoring the Front Page of the Year prize, as it previously did when the awards were organized by the Society of Editors.
A host of experienced editors and journalism trainers have taken part in the judging under the chairmanship of Peter Sands, former editor of the Northern Echo, and Gail Walker, who edited the Belfast Telegraph.
The full shortlist is as follows:
Campaign of the Year
Birmingham Live and Mail – Boot rogue landlords out of Birmingham
Liverpool Echo – Whose Side Are You On?
Cumberland & Westmorland Herald and Keswick Reminder—Help us to help Hospice at Home
The Herald – Covid memorial campaign
Press and Journal / Evening Express – The Big Food Appeal
Express & Star – Feed a Family
Stoke Sentinel – Harper-Lee’s Law
Camden New Journal – CNJ Food Aid Van (Covid + Ukraine)
Columnist of the Year
Phil Wisdom – Devon and Cornwall Media
Paul Kirkley – Cambridge Independent
Catriona Stewart – The Herald and Glasgow Times
Kerry Hudson—The Press and Journal
Catherine Deveney—The Press and Journal
Alex Watson—The Press and Journal
Sam McBride-Belfast Telegraph
Patrick Ward – Archant
Digital Initiative of the Year
The Press and Journal—Highland League Weekly
Wales Online – Wales Online
Belfast Telegraph – The Northern Ireland Assembly Election
The Courier/Press and Journal – The Courier/Press and Journal
BirminghamLive – Commonwealth Stories
Reach PLC – Showcase team
The Courier / Press and Journal – WW1 Remembrance
The Courier / Press and Journal – Tracking the NHS in Scotland
Feature writer of the year
Beth Abbit-Manchester Evening News
Hannah Hiles – Stoke on Trent Live
Sophie Halle-Richards – Manchester Evening News
Abbie Wightwick – Wales Online
Ellie House-DC Thomson
Will Hayward – Wales Online
Catriona Stewart – The Herald and Glasgow Times
Ryan O’Neill – Wales Online
Front page of the year
The Chronicle, Newcastle – Newcastle United takeover
The Herald, Glasgow – Cost of living crisis
South Wales Echo – Wales World Cup qualification
The Herald on Sunday – Russian invasion of Ukraine
Liverpool Echo – Olivia Pratt Korbel murder
Belfast Telegraph – ‘Belfast’ Oscar nominations
Manchester Evening News – NHS in crisis
News brand of the year (large)
Liverpool Echo
KentOnline
Belfast Telegraph
Oxford Mail
Manchester Evening News
Shropshire Star
The Northern Echo
News brand of the year (small)
Kentish Gazette
Cambridge Independent
The Impartial Reporter
Camden New Journal
The Ulster Herald
Evening Express
Islington Tribune
Kent Messenger
News website of the year
Manchester Evening News
Wales Online
Belfast Telegraph
KentOnline
The Courier
Liverpool Echo
ChronicleLive
photographer of the year
James Hardisty – Yorkshire Post Newspapers
Tony Johnson – Yorkshire Post Newspapers
Mark Williamson – Stratford-upon-Avon Herald
Keith Heppell – Cambridge Independent, Iliffe Media
Steven MacDougall-DC Thomson
John Myers – Walesonline / Bristol Post
Ian Longthorne – Maidenhead Advertiser
Mhairi Edwards-DC Thomson
Reporter of the Year – Daily
Will Hayward – Wales Online
Dale Haslam-DC Thomson
Zak Garner-Purkis – MyLondon
Allison Morris-Belfast Telegraph
Sam McBride-Belfast Telegraph
Sharon O’Neill – Mediahuis
Martin Williams – The Herald / Herald on Sunday
Stephanie Balloo – BirminghamLive/Birmingham Mail Reach PLC
John Toner – Mediahuis
Martyn McLaughlin – Scotland on Sunday
Reporter of the Year – Weekly
Charles Thomson-Newsquest
Gill Sutherland – Stratford Herald/Iliffe Media
Lydia Chantler-Hicks – KM Media Group
Gemma Gardner – Iliffe Media
Paul Derrick – Bury Free Press/Suffolk New
Reporting Communities Award
BirminghamLive/Birmingham Mail-Brummie Muslims
Wales Online – Riverside, Cardiff
BirminghamLive/Birmingham Mail – LGBT community
The Herald and Glasgow Times – Govanhill, Glasgow
WalesOnline – Ringland, Newport
Media Wales – Cardiff communities
WalesOnline – Rhys Langford coverage
South Wales Argus – Traveling newsroom
Scoop of the Year
Manchester Evening News – Child’s death linked to damp council flat
Scotland on Sunday – Scottish firm linked to Russian invasion put on trade blacklist
Basingstoke Gazette – Sacked police officer named after newspaper’s High Court challenge
The Northern Echo – Someone else is buried in dad’s grave
Liverpool ECHO – Did hospital bomber exploit failing system?
The Scotsman – Legal advice on Scottish independence referendum to be released
The Herald / Herald on Sunday – Astonishment as ScottishPower pays out dividends worth £7bn
The Herald – Pensioner dies after waiting 40 hours for ambulance
Specialist Journalist of the Year
Allison Morris-Belfast Telegraph
Ben Arnold-Manchester Evening News
Liam Thorp-Liverpool Echo
Martin Williams – The Herald / Herald on Sunday
Ciaran Barnes – Sunday Life
Martyn McLaughlin – The Scotsman / Scotland on Sunday
Sports Journalist of the Year
Benjy Nurick – Southern Daily Echo
Neil Allen – Portsmouth News
Samuel Luckhurst-Manchester Evening News
Katie Sands – Wales Online
Jon Colman – Newsquest Cumbria
James Piercy – Bristol Live
Mark Taylor – Cambridge Independent
Alan Temple-DC Thomson
Supplement of the Year
Warrington Guardian – Life in Lockdown Warrington Guardian
Mediahuis/Belfast Telegraph – Weekend magazine
Mediahuis/Belfast Telegraph – Review
Altrincham Today – Altrincham Today
The Northern Echo- Memories
Newsquest Cumbria – Newsquest Farmer
Newsquest/The Northern Echo – BUSINESSiQ
Hereford Times-One Planet
Young Journalist of the Year
Daniel HordonThe Northern Echo
Lucy John – Wales Online
Ffion Lewis – Media Wales
Josh Sandiford – Birmingham Mail and Birmingham Live
Helena Vesty – Manchester Evening New
Danny Rigg-Liverpool Echo
Annie Owen – Reach Plc
Jasmine North – Yorkshire Live
