I am Managing Director of Social Spider CIC, publisher of six local news publications: Waltham Forest Echo, Haringey Community Press, Enfield Dispatch, EC1 Echo, Barnet Post and Newham Voices.Social Spider CIC launched in 2003 and previously produced community youth publications and then One in Four, a national mental health magazine.Since 2014, we have been developing Social Spider Community News a sustainable social enterprise model for local news - which starts from the position that local news matters to people and then attempts to secure the resources necessary to create the best possible local news publications working with local communities. We currently have four monthly print publications and one bi-monthly print publication with a combined circulation of 65,000 - making us the second biggest local news print publisher in London (despite being a small organisation with a tiny budget) - alongside a fast-growing online readership.We are the only local news publisher with local offices and locally-based in the areas we operate in. We believe that independent local news is vitally important for holding power to account at a local level, enabling people to find out about activities and services in their local communities and amplifying the voices of local residents (particularly those whose voices might otherwise be ignored).We're keen to work with others to develop a sustainable, pluralistic local news landscape across the UK. My specialities: independent local news, local journalism, public interest news, community media, business models, project development, social innovation, social investment, impact investment, social enterprise