Newsbrands from Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland are leading the way in the race for this year’s Regional Press Awards as the shortlists are published today.

Reach plc’s all-Wales news website WalesOnline has secured the largest number of nominations for the awards which aim to celebrate the bgest of regional journalism in 2023.

Its 14 nominations compare with 12 for the Belfast Telegraph and 11 for Glasgow-based daily The Herald and its sister titles, the Herald on Sunday and Glasgow Times.

The best-performing English titles in the shortlist are the Northern Echo and Manchester Evening News with seven apiece, narrowly ahead of the Liverpool Echo on six.

The shortlist has been selected by a large panel of experts drawn from across the industry, chaired by former Reach plc editorial leader Alison Gow and former Northern Echo editor Peter Sands.

Initial judging took place online before Christmas with the final selections made yesterday morning.

The prizes will be handed out at a lunch at Quaglino’s, Bury Street, London on Tuesday 16th April 2024.

Tickets are now on sale here with an early bird rate of £275 per person or £225 per person for group bookings of more than three available until 14 February.

For the second year running, the event is being organised by magazine publisher Haymarket which took over the management of the awards from the Society of Editors in 2022.

HoldtheFrontPage is once again a partner in the awards and is sponsoring the Front Page of the Year category.

Three new categories have been introduced for this year’s event – Opinion Writer of the Year, Crime & Investigation Reporter of the Year and Best Live Coverage.

The full list of contenders is below.

Crime & Investigative Reporter of the Year

Phil Coleman, Newsquest Cumbria
Jonathan Humphries, Liverpool Echo
Neil Mackay, The Herald
John Scheerhout, Manchester Evening News
Dan Taylor, The Mail
Charles Thomson, Newsquest

Campaign of the Year

Awaab’s Law, Manchester Evening News
Dual The A9, The Inverness Courier
Knife Crime, The Northern Echo
Our Communities Together – a cost of living crisis appeal, Newsquest Wales
Save Our Railway Ticket Offices, Western Morning News
Stop Knives Taking Lives, ChronicleLive/The Chronicle

Specialist Journalist of the Year

Ciaran Barnes, Sunday Life
Eddie Bisknell, Derbyshire Live/Derby Telegraph
Kirsten Elder, Belfast Telegraph
Conor Gogarty, WalesOnline
Will Hayward, WalesOnline
Neil Mackay, The Herald
Liam Thorp, Liverpool Echo
Martin Williams, The Herald and Herald on Sunday

Supplement of the Year

Amazing Welsh Homes, Western Mail
BUSINESSiQ, The Northern Echo
Journal 150th special edition, Newmarket Journal
The Northern Echo Weekend Memories, The Northern Echo
Reflections (finding hope after tragedy), Ulster Herald
Spirit of Northern Ireland Awards, Sunday Life
Weekend magazine, Western Mail

Feature Writer of the Year

Beth Abbit, Manchester Evening News
Ruby Kitchen, The Yorkshire Post
Ffion Lewis, WalesOnline
Neil Mackay, The Herald
Sam McBride, Belfast Telegraph
Elliot Ryder, Liverpool Echo
Stephen Topping, Manchester Evening News

News Website of the Year

Belfast Telegraph
ChronicleLive
KentOnline
Southern Daily Echo
Suffolk News
WalesOnline

Opinion Writer of the Year

Chris Donnelly, The Irish News
Will Hayward, WalesOnline
Neil Mackay, The Herald
Sam McBride, Belfast Telegraph
Sara Robinson, WalesOnline
Catriona Stewart, Herald & Times
Phil Wisdom, Cornwall and Devon Media

Young Journalist of the Year

Phoebe Abruzzese, The Northern Echo
Tom Bedworth, Warrington Guardian
Tom Burgess, The Northern Echo
Ethan Davies, Manchester Evening News
Lucy John, WalesOnline
Hannah Richardson, LeicestershireLive
Lily Shanagher, Henley Standard
Abi Whistance, Mill Media Co

News Brand of the Year (Large)

Belfast Telegraph
The Irish News
KentOnline
The Northern Echo
Sunday Life
WalesOnline
Yorkshire Evening Post

News Brand of the Year (Small)

Cambrian News
Cambridge Independent
Camden New Journal
The Detail
The Oxford Times
South Wales Echo
UlsterHerald, TyroneHerald, Strabane Chronicle

Reporter of the Year (Daily)

Phil Coleman, Newsquest Cumbria
Sophie Doughty, Newcastle Chronicle
Conor Gogarty, WalesOnline
Lucy John, WalesOnline
Sam McBride, Belfast Telegraph
Hannah Richardson, LeicestershireLive
Liam Thorp, Liverpool Echo
Martin Williams, The Herald and Herald on Sunday

Reporter of the Year (Weekly)

Paul Derrick, Bury Free Press/Suffolk News
Gemma Gardner, Cambridge Independent
Ciaran O’Neill, Sunday World
Sharon O’Neill, Sunday Life
Gill Sutherland, Stratford Herald
Charles Thomson, Newsquest
Ellis Whitehouse, Essex Live

Reporting Communities Award

Greater Govanhill CIC
The Herald
The Inverness Courier
Ipswich Star
LeicestershireLive/Leicester Mercury

Sports Journalist of the Year

Neil Allen, Portsmouth News
Steven Beacom, Belfast Telegraph
Jon Colman, Newsquest Cumbria
Luke Jarmyn, Freelance
Ciaran Kelly, ChronicleLive/The Journal
Joe Thomas, Liverpool Echo
Stuart Watson, East Anglian Daily Times/Ipswich Star

Photographer of the Year

Rob Browne, WalesOnline
James Hardisty, The Yorkshire Post
Tony Johnson, The Yorkshire Post
Simon Hulme, The Yorkshire Post
Kevin Scott, Belfast Telegraph
Mark Williamson, Stratford Herald

Designer of the Year

Dawn Egan, The Irish News
Raymond Esteban, Belfast Telegraph
Nancy Fallows, Newsquest
Duncan Jackson, National World
Michelle Lockwood, National World
Michael McKenzie, The Herald

Front Page of the Year

How could this happen? – Belfast Telegraph
Banksy – The Herald
Senseless – Nottingham Post
Tragedy and Riot – South Wales Echo
Blind Courage – Sunday World
Lyon-Hearts – Western Mail
Plans row turns ugly – Wiltshire Times

Best Live Coverage

Belfast Telegraph
Belfast Telegraph – Visuals Team
Birmingham Mail/ Birmingham Live
Chester Standard
Essex Live
LeicestershireLive
Manchester Evening News
WalesOnline

Digital Initiative of the Year

Manchester Evening News
Public Notice Portal (PNP)
Newsquest
Reach plc WhatsApp Communities
Surrey Live – Bake On Bake Off
The Northern Agenda
WalesOnline

Scoop of the Year

Back from the Dead, The Northern Echo
Councillors used ‘back door’ to beat parking fines, Liverpool Echo
Exposed: Our hidden camera uncovers exploitation and pressure-selling at direct sales firm, WalesOnline
‘I was drunk’, confesses witness in murder case, Newsquest Investigations
Michael O’Brien: ‘I killed him’, Nottinghamshire Live/the Nottingham Post
Mutiny at Sea, The Herald/Herald on Sunday