A farewell – and a new chapter for The Lead
Natalie Morris reflects on four years as The Lead is up for two national newsletter awards
After four years at The Lead, I’m stepping away from my role as National Editor.
When we launched in 2022, we set out with a simple but ambitious aim: to tell the stories others weren’t, and to do it with humanity and impact. We didn’t have the scale or resources of legacy newsrooms – but we had a clear purpose. And I’m immensely proud of what we’ve built so far.
From the start, The Lead has sought to shine a light on underreported injustice. That has meant investigating systemic failures – from my own reporting on NHS sickle cell care and rural racism, to our sustained focus on child poverty and the structural inequalities shaping people’s lives across the UK. We have consistently backed stories that didn't make it into the mainstream news agenda, and trusted our pool of contributing journalists to pursue them with patience and diligence. That trust has paid off.
We have proven that impactful journalism doesn’t require vast resources, just editorial courage and a commitment to the communities we cover. Across our titles, we’ve been recognised with award nominations and wins that place us alongside some of the biggest names in British media. It’s not just about a pat on the back (although that is nice), but the acknowledgment of the value of the stories we prioritise, and that the voices we elevate deserve national attention.
None of this would have been possible without the team. It has been a privilege to work alongside such a talented, passionate and collaborative group of journalists. In a small newsroom, every story is a collective effort. The creativity, care and hard work that goes into each edition of The Lead is something readers don’t always see, but it has made this publication what it is.
And, of course, none of it exists without our readers. Independent journalism is only as strong as the community that supports it. If you believe in what we do – challenging power, platforming overlooked voices, and telling the stories others don’t value – I urge you to subscribe and help support that mission.
As I step away, The Lead is entering an exciting new chapter. Our national publication will be shifting to taking a deep dive into the issues you’ve told us matter most – ensuring we tell the full story around a topic, not just in writing but with video too as we did with St Helens last year. We’ll begin in June with a comprehensive look at ten years since the Brexit referendum: a defining moment that continues to impact British politics, identity and public life. Make sure you’re signed up to get it first.
We’re also seeing growing recognition for the consistently agenda-setting journalism we do, having secured a place on the shortlist at the Publisher Newsletter Awards as best politics newsletter for our national edition and also best local/community newsletter for our Lead Local network of titles. It’s richly deserved praise for our team and it’s fantastic to see us alongside the likes of the FT, The Times and many other places with much bigger budgets and bigger staffing than us on the shortlists.
As well as our deep-dive stories, you’ll still see us in your inbox each week, and loads of what you love will remain. You’ll still receive razor-sharp Westminster analysis from Zoë Grünewald, and Reform Watch will continue to track Farage and his goons, and our explainer series The Lead Untangles will keep cutting through the noise on the stories that matter. And our growing network of award-winning local news titles continues to expand and go deeper, and we announced this week The Knot in Stoke-on-Trent will be joining our network.
It has been an honour to help shape this publication from the beginning. I leave with enormous gratitude – for the team, for all of our contributors, and for you, our readers. Thank you for being part of this journey. We couldn’t do it without you – and with your support, The Lead will continue to thrive.■
About the author: Natalie Morris, formerly National Editor of The Lead, is a freelance journalist, author, podcast and host – specialising in social justice, culture and inequality. Find more of her work over on Substack and Instagram. Natalie will continue as a contributing editor and writer on some of The Lead’s future stories.