I’m a UK-based journalist specialising in local government accountability, public spending, and civic transparency. I currently work as a Local Democracy Reporter covering Bedford Borough Council, where my reporting focuses on how public institutions make decisions, spend public money, and respond to residents’ concerns.
I have more than 14 years’ experience in journalism and have built my career around finding stories hidden in plain sight; uncovering governance gaps, financial risks, and systemic failures inside local authorities and public bodies. My work draws on public documents, council reports, procurement data, FOI disclosures, and meeting transcripts to produce evidence-led reporting that explains complex public systems in clear, accessible language.
In recent years, I’ve developed a particular focus on public spending and procurement transparency. I’ve led investigative projects examining temporary accommodation expenditure, service charge disputes in social housing, SEND provision shortfalls, and financial resilience in local government. My reporting often combines narrative storytelling with original data analysis, visualisations, and document-based verification.
I’m also actively exploring how artificial intelligence and automation can support investigative and local journalism. I’ve undertaken training in AI applications for reporting and am developing practical tools to help journalists monitor public bodies, track FOI requests, summarise lengthy reports, and identify emerging story leads. My approach is guided by augmented intelligence, using technology to enhance, not replace, human editorial judgement.
Earlier in my career, I founded and published a local news website, wrote a monthly travel industry column, and hosted a community radio travel programme. I also previously owned a travel agency, giving me first-hand experience of small business operations, customer service, and commercial decision-making, perspectives that continue to inform my reporting on public-private partnerships and local economic policy.
Alongside day-to-day reporting, I’m developing longer-form investigative projects on governance oversight, council finance, housing policy, and infrastructure planning. I’m particularly interested in how local decision-making affects everyday lives, from housing security and social care to transport, safety, and environmental resilience.
My work aims to strengthen public understanding of how local institutions operate and to give residents clear, factual information they can use to hold decision-makers to account.
