LAST week we launched Holding Our Community Together, our campaign to raise awareness about the impact made by your local newspaper every week.

After the last 18 months have disrupted everyday life in ways few of us could have imagined, we remain proud about the positive difference our brand has made during the pandemic and successive lockdowns.

Just as we have done for generations, we have reported on life in our area through the bad times and the good.

With people reading our website and following our title and its staff on social media, we are reaching more people than ever before.

Nobody understands our community like your trusted local newspaper, so we wanted to shout about the difference we make.

We take pride in the reach, audience engagement and editorial coverage we deliver and the impact we make each week in the area we serve.

We were there with you during the pandemic.

Under our campaign heading ‘We are in this together’ we ran weekly round-ups of help that was available as our amazing Crediton community spirit such as Crediton Foodbank, whose demand dramatically increased - but luckily so did their donations.

We stood on our doorsteps alongside you and applauded their fantastic work ethic that has helped us to get where we are today with the pandemic.

Having published news for nearly 50 years and we can confidently say nobody understands our community, their strengths and challenges, like us.

As well as holding deep local knowledge, we occupy an unrivalled position celebrating the achievements of our people and holding to account those in authority when questions need to be raised for the public interest.

We can point to the unique ways we have led the public response to important local issues.

We followed the businesses, volunteers and key workers who pulled together to care for others delivering items, helping vulnerable and isolated people in Crediton and the surrounding areas during the pandemic.

We supported the Lions Club of Crediton and District who maintained a lifeline for those with little or no sight ensuring that they could still keep up on local news in the Courier through the Talking Newspaper.

We reported on the vaccine centre in Crediton, which was manned by staff from the local GP surgeries and volunteers and who brought joy and relief to those being vaccinated against Covid-19.

We have also been keeping the community informed of the developments of the proposed Lidl store and the new doctors surgery shortly due to open in the town.

But we are not here just to report on the problems we have faced. Our brand is built on reporting stories about local people, whether it is the everyday milestones in their lives or their extraordinary achievements.

The good news stories we have enjoyed sharing with you recently include a

story we covered about a bride and groom who finally got married on the fourth attempt and had the service filmed by BBC “Songs of Praise”.

And we delighted in the story of Coco the dog who helped children settle back in at Landscore Primary School after the Lockdown.

We’re there to record your successes. After all the pandemic disruption we were delighted to record our pupils’ GCSE and A-Level successes.

The world has changed and continues to change, yet we are proud of the unique place we hold in local life.

We are grateful for your continued support and look forward to sharing all the important news for our community, both in your trusted weekly newspaper or on our website, as we rebuild from the shock of the pandemic.

Most of all, we will value the unique place we hold in the community, reporting on local life as a trusted voice for you.

Thank you for supporting us as we carry on, holding our community together.