Young Reporters
Young Reporters has now been running for ten years as of 2022. It is an opportunity for young people aged between 12 and 19, to write a weekly column which is published in the Grimsby Telegraph covering a huge range of topics. It has also been a finalist and sometimes winner for many local and national awards.
Groups run throughout the year with each group lasting for 3 months, giving each member the chance to write 3 columns. Young Reporters was originally managed by NELC for many years but for the past five years it has been managed through the VANEL youth team (contact details below).
The Young Reporters group will meet on Wednesday afternoons twice a month at 82 Grimsby Road, the Big Local offices opposite the small Tesco, for two hours at a time. Commitment then will be to write 3 pieces of 600 to 700 words over the three month period with each person having agreed set deadlines for their pieces with support from the other members.
Articles appear in the Grimsby Telegraph Viewpoint section every Tuesday and are then available on the VANEL blog so that all articles remain available online.
Increasingly our young writers are also getting opportunities to prepare written pieces for other publications on specific subjects too.
This is a great experience for young people interested in writing.
“My daughter took part In Young Reporters a few years ago and received the Diana Award for this work. Her columns went into her portfolio, and proved a great topic to talk about at interviews. I would highly recommend students apply to this programme, particularly students who want to go into vocations related to English: writing, publishing, marketing and media. These industries require a portfolio of work as standard.” – parent of a young reporter
If you are interested in being part of this fantastic opportunity, or know someone that is, please contact John at VANEL (john@vanel.org.uk) or use this online form (http://vanel.org.uk/va/young-reporters-application-form/)
This opportunity has proved to be a positive addition to the development of CV’s as well as developing key transferrable skills most employers look for, including team work, meeting deadline, effective written and verbal communication, positive challenge and developing understanding of diverse issues young people face.
You can read all the articles by our young reporters on our blog here www.vanel.org.uk/va/tag/young-reporters/
Online application form is currently here. http://vanel.org.uk/va/young-reporters/
Contact
John Mooney at VANEL is the person to contact.
Drop him a line via john@vanel.org.uk
Learn more about Young Reporters idea on this Youtube video = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SHRy0R8I7n4
Celebrating 10 Years
In 2022, Young Reporters celebrated 10 years. That’s dozens of young people who’ve written hundreds of published articles between them. And plenty of life changing experiences for them all.
Thoughts from prolific Young Reporter Grace:
There are genuinely no words, which is ironic considering I have written a total of nearly 25, 700 word articles for the paper, so having no words is unusual for a budding writer like me. But, over the past 2 years now I have been lucky enough to be apart of the young reporters programme. I began during the first lockdown, when I can admit, I was in a very difficult time in my life personally. I have always had a love for all things English and book related, but had never really considered the thought of writing as a career choice. Throughout 3 or more lockdowns I wrote about topics which were never talked about, topics which needed more awareness and topics which were close to my heart. I got the opportunity to use my brain for something which soon became the biggest passion in my life, and my biggest therapy. I have had so much feedback on my articles from teachers, friends, family, strangers, friends of family and even the radio! I have been able to use this programme for my own therapy but also for helping others so that they are able to feel a sense of relief that somebody their age, or just somebody in the area relates to what they are going through. Jenny allowed me into this programme without realising how much it helped me during lockdown, and allowed me to write freely, let me spread my creativity, edited my very long articles which were well over the word limit, and consistently emailed me with praise, check in’s and kind words. I am beyond proud to be apart of this programme with some amazing people, and I am insanely grateful that I now am looking to pursue writing as a career.
I cant wait to write more and to keep inspiring others I hope. Thank you for this opportunity always.
Also, read this recent article by Young Reporter Tomos with thoughts on 10 years of Young Reporters.
Award Winning
Links to Young Reporter articles in the IGNITE blog
Sport and Women. Thoughts from a Young Reporter
This week sport saw history made. As an individual studying PE as a GCSE subject, this moment struck a chord, even though tennis is not a personal interest. It was a time that struck the hearts of many in the nation, indeed the world. Emma Raducanu. A miraculous young woman made history this week by […]
Covid 19. This week’s Young Reporter article
I hate to bring up the topic in which has been on our minds, in our lives and on the news every single day, however I must address the very rumours that this ever present illness has presented… ‘Covid19 lies’, ‘COVID isn’t real’ I am speechless with some of the headlines of magazines, and topics […]
Holidays in a pandemic. Thoughts from a Young Reporter
Currently, as I’m writing this, I’m on a Jet 2 plane on my way home from Portugal. A mask on my face, a window seat, my music in, the plane not even half full. I feel the most relaxed on holiday that I have ever felt. It’s summer, and everyone is either thinking of a […]
Youth Issues & How to Help – Mental Health. A guide by a Young Reporter
Participating in Youth Action, and starting the Your Voice, Your Vote ballot, highlighted issues for young people that are quite often overlooked. My series, throughout these two months, focuses on the main issues for young people in North East Lincolnshire, ways you can help and start these conversations with your children or even your grandchildren. […]
Siblings: A Young Reporter article
Our parents never discussed your thoughts on having a sibling, of how you’d feel growing up with, a sibling. Especially as the middle and youngest child, you are given no choice/ time to react to your siblings, they just are there. I had always wished for a sibling, specifically a sister, since the moment I […]
Dark Humour: a Young Reporter article
We all have experiences good and bad, that shape who we are today. The harder experiences are the more complex it takes to process in our brains, so to process and try and cope with these difficult times we may use humour. Now this isn’t a bad way of coping at all. In fact, it’s […]
‘I can never forget what I saw at the Manchester bombing’
This is an article written by Young Reporter Grace Trippitt to remember her experiences at the Manchester Arena terrorist attack in 2017. Article appeared in the Grimsby Telegraph on 22nd May 2021 here. My most difficult article by far to write. Thinking of the frame to present this in is far from easy. This is […]
Everything You Need to Know for Eurovision 2021. From our Young music Reporter
Assumingly, the majority of people change the channel when Eurovision comes on your tv every springtime. Just hear me out, what if you didn’t pick up the remote and submerged yourself in all things European for a few hours. Now would that be so bad? The Eurovision Song Contest first aired in the UK around […]
The Pros and Cons of Teacher Assessed A Levels. Thoughts from a Young Reporter
When Gavin Williamson, the Secretary of State for UK’s Education, announced that year 11s and 13s would receive teacher assessed grades, I was quite relaxed. But as the summer came, Year 12s were in a state of inconsistency up until this February when he announced the current year would be receiving them too. The mock […]
The Fight For Women’s Rights. A Young Reporter article
Since the beginning of last month, every conversation has touched on the topic of women’s rights. From the controversy surrounding the fact the vigil was held in the pandemic to the way even those thought to protect may be seen differently, everyone was talking about it. On the 3rd of March of this year, we […]