Edinburgh’s weekly free newspaper the Herald and Post is being relaunched next week with a long-serving Edinburgh Evening News journalist as editor.

Helen Martin, a former features editor of the Johnston Press-owned daily, is to take charge of the new-look paper which will focus on consumer news, features and listings.

The title, aimed at the city’s shopping and services sector, will be delivered free to households across the Scottish capital from next Thursday.

Said Helen: “It’s all about being useful to readers. Shopping – be it for food, fashion, or other goods and services – is both an essential and a leisure activity now. And everyone’s looking for value for money.”

Helen also promised “good, old-fashioned, local weekly newspaper coverage” of what is going on in local communities around the city.

Edinburgh Evening News editor, Tom Little – who has overseen the revamp added: “This is an exciting new type of newspaper, designed to give Edinburgh’s discerning readers – and shoppers – something different. Under Helen’s influence, it is shaping up to be a fantastic addition to our stable of newspapers.”

As well as being features editor at the Evening News, Helen has also worked as communications manager at Scotsman Publications.

Her Monday column in the Evening News is to continue alongside her new role.