Message to readers from the editor of The Courier

Every time you pick up a copy of The Courier, you are making an investment in the local reporting and campaigning journalism that sits at the heart of what we do and in which we take pride. We don’t take your support for granted and we try to maintain the high standards of journalism and trust that you have come to expect from us.

However, we are facing battles against a changing media landscape with the rise of unregulated social media, increasing costs of paper, ink and transport in recent years and fierce competition for advertising from less locally focused internet rivals.

The personal connection we have with our communities is something we value and we believe that it is valued by our readers. Our challenge is to ensure that the editorial quality and production values are upheld.

To ensure we meet this challenge we will be increasing the price of The Courier to £1.10 during the week and to £1.30 on a Saturday.

I understand that raising the price will not be popular but it will enable us to continue to produce our unique blend of local, regional and national news, sport, business, farming and features. We know that we remain, for many, the first and only port of call when it comes to local community news and we provide a platform for issues and voices that may otherwise go unheard.

We hope that you continue to enjoy The Courier in the year ahead and we wish our readers a happy and healthy 2019.