Dear Reader,

The local newspaper industry has been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic.

While we are reaching more people than ever before, through our website (countypress.co.uk), our business is under threat due to a fall in newspaper sales and declining advertising revenue.

The harsh reality is unless the public really values news we provide, our industry is at risk of dying out.

Local journalism is vital to democracy. Without our professionally trained journalists, courts and councils would go uncovered – leaving room for widespread corruption and justice to go unreported.

Over the last five years, for instance, we have held the IW Council to account over the highly contentious £600 million PFI scheme for the Isle of Wight’s roads. And we received thanks from the NHS recently after our Wight Angels campaign raised £4,000 for some treats for our frontline heroes in the battle against coronavirus.

The County Press is committed to holding power to account – from our round-the-clock coverage on the coronavirus pandemic to our independent reporting on the local government – our readers are at the heart of everything we do.

Our trusted local journalism is 100 per cent editorially independent.

We set our own agenda with our readers in mind. We are free from commercial bias and are not influenced by politicians or shareholders. This matters as it means you can trust us to tell you the news straight.

However, high-quality journalism comes at a price. We hope you agree, professional and trusted news is worth every penny. That is why we have made the decision to increase our cover price by 5p from next Friday (May 15),

Since 1884 our paper has been covering the Isle of Wight, from Freshwater to Bembridge, Cowes to Ventnor. No one knows this place like we do.

Please help secure our future and allow us to continue providing the Isle of Wight with trusted, local news by subscribing to our home delivery service today.

There are other ways you can help us survive too, such as: Buy a copy of the paper whenever you can; Recommend friends and family sign up to our subscriptions; Get behind us online by liking and sharing our content; Get involved with the conversation and tell us what would you like us to do more or less of?

Thank you for your support in helping us build a sustainable future for trusted local news.

We’re there with you – so please be there with us.

Alan Marriott, Editor, Isle of Wight County Press.