A regional publisher has merged two editorial director roles while also splitting the editorship of one of its newspapers.

Mark Edwards, who had edited the Peterborough Telegraph since 2007, has now stepped down from the title as well as his role as JPIMedia’s editorial director for the Midlands.

JPIMedia has confirmed that its editorial director for the Home Counties, David Summers, will now the Midlands titles to his own portfolio.

Meanwhile Mark’s current editor role in Peterborough will be split, with Nigel Thornton serving as print editor and Carly Roberts overseeing the digital side of the Telegraph’s operation.

Mark, pictured, has tweeted that he is moving to a new position within the company but neither he nor JPIMedia have so far been prepared to reveal what that is.

The merger of the two editorial directorships echoes a similar move made by JPI in the North of England.

That move saw Tim Robinson become editorial director for the North, with Joy Yates and Gillian Parkinson, North East and North West editorial directors respectively, leaving the business as a result.

As well as the Telegraph, Mark previously oversaw more than 20 papers in Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire in his editorial director role.

Posting on Twitter on Thursday, Mark wrote: “After 15 years I am moving to a new role in the company and while I am looking forward to that, I can’t pretend that leaving the top team at Telegraph Towers won’t be a huge wrench.

“Life on the PT is incredibly busy for all of us… long and unsociable hours are the norm. But it is also an absolutely fantastic job. There is never a dull moment, always a challenge to face, and we meet and work with so many great people across the city.

“There are too many people I would like to thank for their encouragement, support, and in many cases, having the courage to speak up on challenging topics and events in their local paper.”

Mark, who first announced his departure in September, went on to thank “every single one” of the Telegraph’s readers and advertisers before saying a “huge thank you” to his staff.

“People often don’t realise the hours they put in. They are a talented, dedicated and hugely enthusiastic team and the paper and our incredibly popular website are in very safe hands,” he added.

“It has been a genuine pleasure and privilege to work with you all. So it is thank you and farewell from me. I look forward to watching Peterborough and the PT prosper together.”

During his time in charge of the Telegraph, Mark oversaw its switch from a daily to a weekly title in 2012.

He previously served as editor of the Northampton Chronicle & Echo between 1996 and 2007.