One year ago today, amid the height of the coronavirus pandemic, Nub News bucked the trend by expanding its presence across Devon.

The Axminster and Seaton Nub News websites were launched on May 21 2020 – part of a growing national network of hyperlocal news websites, and adding to existing sites already flourishing locally in Sidmouth, Exmouth and Honiton.

Cullompton and Dawlish have also since been launched, offering full news coverage across East Devon and adding to Nub News' impressive portfolio of more than 60 websites across the UK.

Experienced veteran journalist Philip Evans MBE, and his daughter Francesca Evans, were appointed by Nub News CEO Karl Hancock to take on the editorship of the new sites in Axminster and Seaton last May.

The father and daughter team are well-known in East Devon; Philip having started his 55-year journalism career in the area before working in London and internationally, and then returning home to edit the renowned Pulman's Weekly News and later launching the View From titles in East Devon, West Dorset and South Somerset.

Francesca has paved a career in local media since graduating with a First Class Honours degree in journalism in 2011. She was given her first editorship at the age of 25 and, along with the Axminster and Seaton Nub News websites, she currently edits her own website and fortnightly newspaper, LymeOnline, in neighbouring Lyme Regis.

Francesca was recently put in the 'hot seat' by Matt Smith of Axminster's Community Waffle House, and you can watch the full interview above in which she discusses her career in journalism and why the local community is so important to her.

What do the Nub News websites offer?

Since launching the Axminster and Seaton websites a year ago, Philip and Francesca have built on the Nub News cornerstone of putting the community at the heart of everything they do; providing local, relevant news coverage their readers can trust, with no annoying pop-up adverts, surveys or paywalls.

The websites have built a loyal readership over the past 12 months, and it's no surprise when you see what the sites have to offer:

* More than 50 news stories relevant to the Axminster, Seaton and East Devon area published every month

* Unrivalled coverage of the Axe Valley sports scene, including football, cricket, tennis, golf and more on our Nub News Sports Portal

* FREE directory listings for local businesses

* FREE what's on listings for local events

* The latest local obituaries in partnership with funeral directors W.G. Potter and Overmass & Chapple

* The latest local job vacancies

* The latest local property listings

* No click-bait, pop-up adverts, surveys or paywalls

* A simple, easy-to-read website which can be easily viewed on your mobile – your town in your pocket!

Regular contributions from guest writers – including Axminster's Andrew Moulding and Dick Sturch, former Seaton county councillor Martin Shaw, and Dave Bruce from Axe Cliff Golf Club – have also proved very popular.

And you can submit your own news story too! Simply click the black 'Nub It' button on the Nub News homepage to submit your story, which will be checked over by the editors before being published.

Readers can also sign up to a free, weekly newsletter and get the week's top stories sent straight to their email inbox every Friday, as well as an extra article written especially for our subscribers.

The Nub News following also continues to grow on social media, with the Axminster and Seaton Nub News Facebook pages now having about 1,000 followers each. Both can also be followed on Twitter for the latest news updates @AxminsterNub and @SeatonNubNews.

Supporting the local community

The Nub News websites have supported local businesses and organisations during the challenging past 12 months, as well as providing useful information on COVID-19, covering local events and celebrating the successes and achievements of the Axminster and Seaton communities, which have pulled together during the pandemic.

We have also sponsored the Axminster Citizen of the Year Award, organised a competition for the top-scoring bowler and batsman of last season's local cricket league, and this summer we are sponsoring the East Devon Bash T20 cricket league.

In Seaton, we also have a partnership with the local Co-op store, bringing you the latest community news via our Co-op Community Chat page. A similar partnership will soon be launched in Axminster.

The websites are now looking to work with local businesses that would be interested in sponsoring Nub News, to ensure these community-minded news outlets continue to flourish for many more years to come.

A range of sponsorship and advertising packages are available to suit all budgets, and we will work with our sponsors to ensure they get best value for their money and reach the widest audience possible.

If you would like to support Axminster or Seaton Nub News as a sponsor and reach our growing audience, contact Philip Evans on 07796 951 911 or email [email protected]

If you have a story or event you would like to share with Nub News, click the black 'Nub It' button on our homepage to submit details, or contact Francesca Evans on 07810 221 420 or email [M][email protected][M+][email protected][.L]