A group editor role overseeing two sister dailies is set to be revived by a regional publisher, a year after the post was made redundant.

Newsquest is seeking a new group editor for its Cumbria titles, which include the News & Star, in Carlisle, The Mail, in Barrow, and a series of sister weekly publications.

HTFP reported last April that James Higgins, who held the group editor role for the former CN Group titles, had left the business after the position was made redundant by Newsquest following its takeover of the business.

At the time, Chris Story and Vanessa Sims, pictured below, were promoted from associate editor to editor at the News & Star and The Mail respectively.

But Newsquest has now circulated a memo, which has been seen by HTFP, to its staff across the country advertising the group editor role.

The memo was sent days after it was confirmed that Jonathan Lee, managing director of Newsquest Cumbria and a former editor of The Mail, was to leave the business, with his responsibilities to be assumed by Newsquest’s North East regional managing director David Coates.

It read:  “A rare and exciting vacancy has arisen for a Group Editor to lead the award-winning  Newsquest Cumbria stable of publications.

“Heading talented teams based at several centres across the region, the Group Editor will be expected to oversee print management of all Cumbria’s titles as well as driving our strategy to grow audience online.

“The successful applicant will have responsibility for two daily titles: the News & Star in Carlisle and The Mail in Barrow, a number of other weekly titles including The Whitehaven News, The Times & Star and the Hexham Courant – as well as two of the biggest and most successful newspapers in the country: The Westmorland Gazette and The Cumberland News.

“Ideally you will be someone with strong experience of working in the regional press, have an established background in leading editorial teams, and have a firm grasp of multimedia journalism, digital content and social media.”

HTFP has approached Newsquest for further comment on the decision to revive the group editor role but the company is yet to respond.