#GE2024: No News is Bad News for Leicester

The Great Central Gazette is an independent, not-for-profit newspaper in Leicester, written by and for local people. Independent news outlets like ours – owned by the community – are under threat of closure, turning British towns and cities into so-called ‘news deserts’.

Now a general election is here — no news is bad news. If our coverage has helped you understand our community a little bit better over the past year, please consider supporting us with a donation to our new crowdfunder.

With the general election sprung upon us unexpectedly, we need your help to keep going strong. Without your support, we will not have enough resources to cover important topics over the next six weeks of campaigning. This means you might miss out on valuable information that helps you understand what's going on in our community during this crucial election period. 

By supporting our crowdfunder, you can help us bridge the gap and keep all members of our community informed and empowered.

We want to:

• Publish explainers and guides about voting, like where to go and when
• Look at policies in more detail with analysis and deep dives
• Arrange debates between candidates, so people can see what they think
• Check if what candidates say is true with a fact-checking service
• Make election tools to help people understand how to vote
• Provide live coverage of the election count and results
• Cover all candidates and parties regardless of their chances
• Create something a little different, like the history of elections in Leicester.

If you have ideas, we’d love to hear them. You can email the editor at [email protected].

The goal is to raise £2,000 to cover all expenses during the general election period. This includes: salaries, web hosting fees, travel expenses, venue hire costs, subscription fees, and legal support when necessary.

We have secured matched funding for Indie News Week 2024 from the Public Interest News Foundation, which could enable us to commission more articles and pay our reporters a freelance wage.

The Indie News Week campaign is by the Public Interest News Foundation and seeks to highlight independent news providers across the UK between Monday, 3 June and Sunday, 9 June 2024. This crowdfunder will remain open until Sunday, 30 June 2024. The general election will be held on Thursday, 4 July 2024.

Without news, how would you know about the issues affecting your community? 

Would you know what your local authorities were planning or whether they were acting legally? 

How would you know if your local environment was being impacted and by whom? 

And how would you know about the positive changes in your area, the success stories? 

As long as you have a local independent news source in your area, your community can stay informed – but sadly, far too many news providers cannot cover their costs, and have to shut down. In Leicester, we want to buck that trend.

“The Gazette's co-operative, not-for-profit model is breaking new ground and working to fill the gap left by the decline of traditional media” – Nick Carter, ex-Leicester Mercury editor

The Gazette was launched in March 2023 by a team of local journalists to give Leicester a different kind of news coverage. Our reporters have over 15 years of combined experience writing for the likes of Private Eye, The Independent, Byline Times, The Canary, and Tribune Magazine. 

We believe in the power of high-quality journalism over chasing clicks and advertising revenue — in fact, we're funded by readers like you. We set up as a co-operative, a type of business model that has no big shareholders or billionaire backers. Instead, people who can afford to support our work join for £2 per month and in return, they become co-owners of the newspaper. This allows members to steer the paper's editorial direction, vote at the annual general meeting (AGM) and elect the board of directors.

Alongside our hard-hitting investigative journalism and solutions-focused approach, we publish a weekly newsletter — Inside Leicester. Our free mailing list delivers fascinating local stories and great recommendations to your email inbox every Monday at 6am.

We also support and mentor people of all ages to be active citizens in today's world. We do that through workshops and events that teach people valuable media skills. Not only that, but we also take on interns and offer work experience to train the next generation of local journalists to the highest standards.

Emma Guy, our editor, is a talented writer and media trainer overseeing editorial content and mentoring interns. Rhys Everquill, our community lead, manages fundraising, community engagement, and operations, and has a background in journalism and community organising. Megan Lupton, our communications lead, is a podcaster and writer, driving our impact through social media, media relations, and creative content creation.

“I'm full of admiration for the team behind The Gazette. They have rapidly become an important voice for Leicester, helping fill the gap in local media” – Geoff Rowe, founder, Leicester Comedy Festival

Are there other ways to contribute?

Yes! We recognise that during a cost of living crisis, not everyone will be able to donate. Instead, you can:

• Fill out our general election survey
• Help us track campaigning and leaflets
• Share this crowdfunder far and wide!

What payment options are there for pledging?

Supporters can pledge on a project using all major credit/debit cards. Simple.

What happens if the project is not successful?

Every donation matters. If we do not quite reach the goal, we’ll make some adjustments and power forward with what we’ve got.

Can I pledge anonymously?

Yes! Simply tick ‘Pledge anonymously’ when making your pledge.

If I choose discounted membership, will it auto-renew?

No, you will be sent an email 12 months from the end of our crowdfunder encouraging you to renew your membership.

Can organisations donate?

Yes! Any organisation can donate to this crowdfunder — even if you follow 'purdah' or 'pre-election period of sensitivity'. The Gazette is strictly non-partisan.