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Fund kickstarts careers of almost 100 journalists

A special reception has been held to to celebrate the work of the Journalism Diversity Fund in kick-starting the careers of almost 100 journalists.

The lunch, hosted at the Daily Mail’s offices, was attended by more than 60 people, including bursary recipients who have benefited from the fund.

High profile media figures attending included Radio Five Live presenter Dotun Adebayo, Daily Telegraph deputy editor Benedict Brogan, BBC London special correspondent Kurt Barling and Guardian news reporter Haroon Siddique.

The fund was set up by the National Council for the Training of Journalists in 2005 to bring more diversity to UK newsrooms and has now helped 94 would-be journalists to attend training courses.

At the event, NCTJ chairman Kim Fletcher accepted a £100,000 donation on behalf of the Journalism Diversity Fund from David Pugh, managing director of the Newspaper Licensing Agency.

David said: “By the end of 2010, the NLA will have contributed over half a million pounds to the Journalism Diversity Fund since its launch in 2005.

“We, and the newspapers we represent, are proud to have supported the training of just under 100 journalists in that time.”

The next deadline for applications to the fund is 29 October for budding journalists who have applied to attend NCTJ-accredited courses next year.

For further information, visit journalismdiversityfund.com.