Express & Star's Green Shoots in line for campaign award
Readers are being asked to vote on how newspapers are making a difference as part of the theme for this year's Local Newspaper Week.
The initiative, led by the Newspaper Society, is calling on readers to vote on the best recent newspaper editorial campaigns, from a selection of 30.
Among them are the Express & Star's own Green Shoots Fund and the Shropshire's Star's London Link Campaign.
The Green Shoots Fund is a partnership set up by the Express & Star and University of Wolverhampton awarding vital funding to help create jobs.
The London Link campaign meanwhile saw our sister paper the Shropshire Star spearhead a lobbying call from MPs, business leaders and rail user groups asking the Government and Network Rail to restore a direct rail service to the capital, after plans to restore that link were blocked last June.
The Green Shoots Fund is awarding shares of a £1.4 million pot from the Government's Regional Growth Fund and has been praised by David Cameron and Nick Clegg.
Former business minister Lord Digby Jones also said the fund would help give businesses the confidence to employ people.
By the start of April, 12 businesses had been awarded a total of £392,000 between them to create a total of 47 jobs between them. Companies with fewer than 250 employees and based in the Black Country are eligible to bid for up to £50,000 each.
The Green Shoots Fund is open to businesses within the Sandwell, Dudley, Walsall or Wolverhampton council areas.
For information about voting on campaigns and the initiative visit localnewspaperweek.co.uk.
Voting opened last night (Sunday) and closes at midnight on Wednesday.
The winner will be announced as a special award at the Society of Editors Regional Press Awards in London on Friday.
