A regional publisher’s education scheme that was expanded in a bid to attract school leavers into journalism has celebrated its 15th anniversary.

Newsquest’s Young Reporter Scheme has operated in schools across London and the South-East of England since 2008 and offers pupils the chance to get their work published in its regional titles.

Students sign up for a period of eight months and write articles every month, which are uploaded onto Newsquest websites.

Last year, a companion apprenticeship programme was launched for which students on the scheme have been encouraged to apply, with the aim of Newsquest taking on school leaves from the age of 16.

A number of recent participants in the Young Reporter Scheme have now been invited to apply for apprentice roles with the group as a result.

Diana Jarvis, who is involved in the running of the scheme, said: “This opportunity has opened a lot of doors for a lot of young people.

“Some of those are now working for leading media organisations and some have followed completely different career paths, but all of those who I have spoken to over the years, have said how much the scheme helped them when moving into tertiary education and their chosen careers.”