3rd to the 9th of June is Indie News Week (#indienewsweek). It’s a chance to celebrate and back the importance of publications like Waltham Forest Echo.

What is Indie News Week?

In the words of Jonathan Heawood, the executive director of the Public Interest News Foundation:

“Indie news providers are the unsung heroes of local communities across the UK, unearthing stories and informing their audiences. Through Indie News Week, we want to say thank you to the enterprising journalists and editors who make up this sector and help them connect even more deeply with their communities.”

We are part of a movement of indie news providers across the country, using limited resources to create public interest news – ethical and impartial journalism that informs and empowers the public about the things that matter to all of us.

Across Indie News Week, small, independent new publications like us will be celebrating their work and the work of our sector. Check out hashtags like #indienewsweek to see the range of small publications across the country.

The slogan for this year’s Indie News Week is ‘No News is Bad News’.

When we started Waltham Forest Echo in 2014, we knew that the newspaper industry was facing challenging times. We knew it would be an uphill struggle. We’ve never had rich backers or investment.

Well-informed communities are more able to act together to shape their own future. Local news is fundamental to a healthy democratic society and invaluable in helping to create strong communities.

Social Spider Community News, publishers of Waltham Forest Echo, are a social enterprise. Waltham Forest Echo was our first paper and we wouldn’t still be here without the support of you, our community. It was great to see everyone who came to meet our team on Monday 3rd June at The Mill.

We’re here to serve our community and times have never been harder for news organisations.

As large corporate local papers get less and less local, independent community news providers are struggling to generate enough revenue to carry out their invaluable work, putting local democracy, civic engagement, and community cohesion at risk.

Make a difference this Indie News Week

During Indie News Week, and for the rest of the month of June, the Public Interest News Foundation’s Indie News Fund will match fund all one-off donations and new supporter donation subscriptions for the month of June.

Every penny you donate to us in June 2024, be it a one-off donation, a £50 annual supporter donation, the beginning of a regular monthly one, or as a patron will be doubled and will help us to keep bringing Waltham Forest the news it needs.

No news is bad news

Independent news outlets like ours – reporting for the community without rich backers – are under threat of closure, turning British towns into news deserts.

The audiences they serve know less, understand less, and can do less.

If our coverage has helped you understand our community a little bit better, please consider supporting us with a monthly, yearly or one-off donation.

Choose the news. Don’t lose the news.

Monthly direct debit

Annual direct debit

£5 per month supporters get a digital copy of each month’s paper before anyone else, £10 per month supporters get a digital copy of each month’s paper before anyone else and a print copy posted to them each month. £50 annual supporters get a digital copy of each month's paper before anyone else.