A senior editorial chief has announced her departure from a regional publisher after almost two decades of service.

Alison Gow has revealed she is leaving Reach plc, where she is currently interim audience and content director for video and audio.

Alison, pictured, has also previously edited Wales on Sunday and the North Wales Daily Post, later becoming digital innovation editor at Reach and its forerunner Trinity Mirror before taking on her present role.

She announced her departure in a Twitter thread this morning.

Alison said: “After 19 years with Reach, enjoying various adventures in journalism, I am signing off.

“It’s been wonderful, exciting and challenging – I’ve learned so much, worked with amazing people and made friends for life.

“I walked into my first newsroom at 18 and I’ve been in them ever since, so this feels weird to write – and also slightly self-indulgent.

“But anyway, that’s my news. After 31 March, you’ll find me in the mountains with my dogs, probably without a mobile signal.”

Alison worked as both deputy editor and executive editor (digital) of the Liverpool Echo before taking on Wales on Sunday between 2010 and 2012.

She then ran the Daily Post before taking up the digital innovation editor role the following year, also spending time as audience and content director for the North West and North Wale.

Alison was also responsible for overseeing the launch of Laudable, a Google-funded project involving Reach and JPIMedia aimed at turning podcasts and other audio content into a sustainable revenue stream.

Away from her day-to-day work, she joined the board of the Society of Editors in 2014 and later served as its president from 2019 to 2021.

In a joint statement, Reach chief digital publisher David Higgerson and group editor-in-chief Lloyd Embley told staff: “As well as being a highly-respected figure outside the business, not least through her work on the board of the Society of Editors, Alison has consistently been a force for digital transformation and innovation within our business, and a cornerstone of what has grown into the Live Network.

“We know many of you will have worked closely with Alison in one way or another, so please join us in wishing her all the best for the future and in thanking her for her immense contribution to the business.”