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May 24, 2007

NCTJ: 50 per cent make the grade as senior reporters

By Press Gazette

Some 127 candidates out of 254 who took their NCTJ National Certificate Exams in March have passed. The 50 per cent pass rate is broadly in line with previous years.

Journalists are eligible to take the NCE test 18 months after taking their preliminary NCTJ exams, if they have been working as journalists.

The pass rate for those taking the exam first time around was 38 per cent – the lowest since October 2003.

The chief examiner commented that shorthand speed was a problem for some candidates.

The winners of the £250 prizes for best performance in each section went to Eleanor Simmonds, Oxford Mail (news interview); David Williams, Waltham Forest Guardian (news report); Elizabeth Smith, South Wales Evening Post (newspaper practice) and Matthew Jackson, Swindon Advertiser (logbook).

Here is the full list of those who passed:

Bridget Aherne, Tameside Reporter

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David Ainsworth, Brentwood Gazette

Rachel Atkinson, Lancaster Guardian

Jessica Bauldry, Mid Sussex Times

Sam Beattie, Middlesborough Evening Gazette

Helen Bell, Skegness Standard & Citizen

Gareth Bethell, Swindon Advertiser

Thomas Bevan, Western Gazette

Rebecca Bird, Tameside Reporter

Adam Blakeman, Cheadle Post & Times

Jack Blanchard, Boston Standard

Anthony Bond, Diss Express

John Boyman, Basingstoke Gazette

Jennifer Brentnall, South Wales Argus

Graeme Brown, The Sentinel

Nicolino Brunetti, Bucks Free Press

Tracey Bryce, Alloa & Hillfoots Advertiser

Jonathan Bunn, Waltham Forest Guardian

Claire Burke, South Wales Argus

Christopher Burton, Worksop Guardian

Jody Clark, Courier Newspapers

Gaynor Clarke, Bury Times

David Coates, Lancashire Evening Post

Penny Coles, Tameside Advertiser

Katherine Cooksey, The Sentinel

Sarah Cosgrove, Waltham Forest Guardian

Tim Cunningham, Ilkeston Advertiser

Keir Dawson, Spenborough Guardian

Neil Docking, Warrington Guardian

Matthew Elder, Fife Free Press

Kirsty Elleray, Stockport Express Advertiser

Jason Evans, South Wales Evening Post

Stephen Exley, Cambridge Evening News

Natalie Fahy, Richmond & Twickenham Times

Kathryn Fell, North Devon Journal

James Ferguson, Oldham Advertiser

Daniel Frost, Courier Newspapers

Glenn Garrett, Courier Newspapers

Louise Glyde, Hampshire Chronicle

Daniel Goater, Dorset Echo

Jamie Goodwin, Scunthorpe Evening Telegraph

Charlotte Graves-Tamvakis, Islington Gazette

Gerran Grimshaw, The Press, York

Oliver Harry, Petersfield Post

Farhana Haque, Batley News

Mark Hemmings, East Herts & Broxbourne Herald

Christopher Hinton, Harrogate Advertiser

Steven Hughes, Reading Evening Post

Emma Hutchings, Hendon Times

Matthew Jackson, Swindon Advertiser

David Johnson, The Sentinel

Oliver Jelley, Northants Evening Telegraph

Daniel King, Northern Echo

Ryan Kisiel, South London Press

Ben Knowles, Banbury Guardian

Rebecca Lawrence, Shropshire Star

Andrew Lewis, Express & Echo, Exeter

Jonathan Lewis, North Devon Journal

James Liggett, Congleton Chronicle

Elizabeth Littler, Braintree & Witham Times

Daniel Lombard, South Wales Argus

Emma Luther, Gloucestershire Echo

Kerra Maddern, Express & Echo, Exeter

Kate Martin, Basingstoke Gazette

Jonathan Massey, Watford Observer

Andrew McCreaddie, Knutsford Guardian

Sean McFarlane, The Sentinel

Richard Meade, Barking & Dagenham Post

Katya Mira, The Argus, Brighton

Kathryn Moore, Yorkshire Evening Post

Owen Morton, Courier Newspapers

Thomas Moseley, The News, Portsmouth

Emma Mountford, Middleton & North Manchester Guardian

Jonathan Muir, Peterborough Evening Telegraph

Sally Munro, Gloucestershire Echo

Gavin Murray, Wakefield Express

Sara Nelson, News Shopper

Edward O’Mara, Stamford Mercury

Jane O’Neill, Northumberland Gazette

Benjamin Page, Slough Observer

Colin Parker, Surrey Advertiser

Amy Parkes, Worksop Guardian

Thomas Pegg, Mansfield Chad

Jenna Pudelek, Kent & Sussex Courier

Eric Randolph, Daily Echo, Bournemouth

Benjamin Raza, Bedfordshire Times & Citizen

Jennifer Rivett, Basingstoke Gazette

Brendan Rooney, Dunfermline Press

Christina Savvas, The Sentinel

Aleisha Scott, Western Daily Press

Laura Sharpe, Accrington Observer

Thomas Sharpe, Rotherham Advertiser

Victoria Sheard, Dewsbury Reporter

Thomas Shipp, Hertfordshire Mercury

Eleanor Simmonds, Oxford Mail

Andrew Simpson, Northwich Guardian

Gordon Simpson, Wiltshire Gazette & Herald

Anna Smith, Sheffield Star

Elizabeth Smith, South Wales Argus

Jessica Smith, East London Advertiser

Steven Smith, Hampshire Chronicle

Lindsay Southall, Bury Times

Matthew Squires, Lancashire Evening Post

Clara Story, Surrey Comet

Andrew Streat, Maidenhead Advertiser

Nadia Stone, The Bath Chronicle

Simon Thacker, Accrington Observer

Helen Thomas, Wiltshire Times

Paula Thompson, Southern Daily Echo

Rebecca Thomson, South Wales Argus

Laura Thorpe, The Somerset County Gazette

Naomi Tolley, Herald Express

Liz Trist, Express & Echo, Exeter

Claire Truscott, The Argus, Brighton

Joseph Tulip, Hexham Courant

Stuart Turner, Rugby Advertiser

Samuel Underwood, Littlehampton Gazette

Christopher Walker, Doncaster Free Press

Emily Walker, Swindon Evening Advertiser

John Ward, Reading Evening Post

Matthew Westby, Grimsby Telegraph

Alison White, News Shopper

Christopher Wickham, Richmond & Twickenham Times

David Williams, Waltham Forest Guardian

Ruth Williams, Northants Evening Telegraph

Kate Yates, Worcester Evening News

Christopher Young, Hartlepool Mail

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