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Mum and daughter go head-to-head for regional award

A mother and daughter who work for the same daily title are going head-to-head tonight for a top regional journalism award.

Zena Hawley is education correspondent of the Derby Telegraph while her daughter, Caroline Jones, covers the health brief for the Local World title.

Both have been nominated for the campaign of the year prize at tonight’s Midlands Media Awards to be held in Birmingham.

Zena has been shortlisted for a fund-raising campaign for the Derbyshire Children’s Holiday Centre in Skegness while Caroline was nominated for a campaign to promote lifesaving skills.

Derby Telegraph reporters Caroline Jones, left, and her mum Zena Hawley

Unsurprisingly, both women say they would be happy for the other to win the prize.

Said Caroline:  “It’s amazing to be in the same category as my mum and it will probably never happen again given where we are in our careers.

“My mum is my inspiration and the reason I went into journalism and I never imagined being half as good a journalist as she is, so to be in the same category as her is wonderful

“She won’t mind at all who wins, but I would rather see her win.”

Added Zena: “I don’t know how common mothers and daughters working together actually is but I don’t think there have been many instances of this.

“Our paths don’t cross much at work with me doing education and Caroline doing health so it’s ironic we should be in the same category.  As a mother, I’d love her to win.”

Zena already has one major award under her belt having won the Scoop of the Year title at last month’s Regional Press Awards.

She won the prize for her story ‘Teachers at City Muslim school ordered to wear hijabs’ which was followed up across the national media.

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  • June 6, 2014 at 3:23 pm
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    Except they weren’t head to head, were they? There were others on the short list.

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