It is with great delight that we announce Australian Community Media (ACM) journalist Andrew Messenger, has been honoured with a Walkley Award, Coverage of Rural and Regional Affairs, for his work on a campaign for youth beds at the new Banksia mental health unit, at Tamworth hospital.
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The awards were held in Sydney on Friday night.
Northern Daily Leader editor Fiona Ferguson said the award was testament to the importance of regional media and "the impact we can have for our local community".
Read Andrew's stories:
"We are proud of our track record in the community," Ms Ferguson said.
"We are not afraid to tackle the issues that matter, because we know we can help to make a difference.
"The issue of mental health - especially youth mental health - is a difficult one, but we felt it was a subject that we needed to confront head on.
"The campaign has resulted in a commitment for youth beds to be included in the design of the new Banksia unit at the hospital, and for that, the entire community can take a bow.
"Andrew did an outstanding job with what can be an extremely sensitive subject.
"The people he interviewed trusted him to present their story with care and compassion.
"He pushed the envelope and was rightly rewarded for all his hard work."
Canberra Times cartoonist David Pope won the Walkley Award for Cartoon category for his piece called "Rollout de Vax".
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