Uncovering stories of public interest
I began my career in journalism and gained outstanding editorial skills, including researching, attention to detail, writing punchy news stories and transforming press releases.
I have worked as a reporter at the Metro, chief reporter for the Somerset Live regional news website, news editor for the Bath Chronicle and regional editor for Nub News.
Investigations
Using all my newsgathering skills I created a campaign on the issue of executive pay and governance in higher education. It took off in the national media and led to real change when the University of Bath appointed a new vice-chancellor on a vastly reduced salary, saving more than £1 million over five years. The campaign demonstrated the importance of holding institutions to account.
The Guardian commissioned me to write an opinion piece on the important role of the regional media, following my investigation into vice-chancellor pay.
I broke the story about transgender criminal Tara Hudson being sent to a male prison and secured the first interview on her release, revealing the harassment she suffered in Bristol Prison.
Following the outcry, the Ministry of Justice issued new guidance for the treatment of transgender prisoners.
National news
In 2021, I was a national news reporter for the Metro UK website, where I sourced highly sharable stories and filed completed copy to sharp deadlines. These are a few of my stories.
Reviews
The Education Editor of the Guardian, Richard Adams, praised my “tenacious” reporting on vice-chancellor pay.
Here are some readers’ comments about the quality of my work on Richmond Nub News, an online newspaper I launched during the pandemic. I delivered engaging stories on a daily basis, reaching 72% of the town’s population.
“Excellent journalism. Well done. You seem to really know what is going on at a local level”
Con O’Brien
“An increasingly important source of balanced local news. Please keep it up!”
Stephen Speak
“Keep up the good work Sam. Richmond Nub News is entertaining and informative. A breath of fresh air!”
Loo White
“Am enjoying Richmond Nub News – a great source of local news”
Kate Brundage
“This is an excellent news website with proper local news”
Fiona Murray