Newspapers across the country joined in the celebrations to mark Local Newspaper Week.

The event, organised by the Newspaper Society, came to an end yesterday.

This year it had had an environmental theme, and many newspapers took the opportunity to promote green initiatives, with some also publishing a specially-penned article by Prince Charles.

The Prince himself paid a visit to one local paper, and together with his wife Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, toured the Tavistock Times Gazette in Devon which will soon celebrate its 150th anniversary.

Others taking on the environmental theme included The Star in Sheffield, which challenged one local councillor to cook a 'planet-saving' meal, and another to clean a house using only natural products.

Reporter Lucy Ashton also completed a green challenge, to use as little electricity as possible during a day.

The Coventry Telegraph, Liverpool Echo, Newcastle Evening Chronicle and Paisley Daily Express also encouraged readers to do their bit, publishing articles on recycling.

And the Swindon Advertiser published an eight-page supplement with information about the environment and the role local newspapers play in the community.

The Hunts Post marked Local Newspaper Week by launching a competition asking schoolchildren to design their own front page.

The overall winner will have their front page professionally designed, printed out and framed.

Meanwhile the Edinbugh Evening News and The Press in York looked back at how they had made a difference in their respective communities through various campaigns, and the Ham & High put together a special readers' edition supplement made up entirely of articles written by readers.

Editor Geoff Martin said the paper had been "inundated" with everything from pieces on serious issues such as the school run problem in Camden to crosswords, poetry and book reviews written by schoolchildren.

He said: "The lovely thing about it is that apart from writing about it in the paper it has not be canvassed.

"It has been really gratifying and fun to work on."