Stroud Times

About Stroud Times

Stroud Times is an independent news publication for Stroud and the Five Valleys in Gloucestershire, publishing online and in print. Launched in 2021 by three former Stroud News and Journal journalists — Ash Loveridge, Matt Bigwood and Carl Hewlett — it was founded on an anti-clickbait promise of quality local journalism, and has grown to include a fortnightly print edition produced in partnership with the Cheltenham Post. Visit the official website at stroudtimes.com.

History and founding

Stroud Times was launched in 2021 — its website going live in March of that year — by Ash Loveridge, Matt Bigwood and Carl Hewlett, three journalists who had previously worked together at the Stroud News and Journal. Their decision to strike out independently reflected a conviction that Stroud deserved better than the clickbait-driven coverage increasingly typical of corporate-owned local news: the new title promised properly reported, community-focused journalism without the pop-ups, slideshows and sensationalism. The launch was a leap of faith — three reporters betting that readers would support quality local news directly. Within its first year the site was reporting more than 100,000 monthly page views, vindicating the bet. In March 2026 the title celebrated its fifth anniversary, marking half a decade of independent operation.

Ownership and funding model

Stroud Times is independently owned by its founders, free of corporate group ownership. Its funding combines digital advertising with print revenues and, since August 2026, a reader donation scheme inviting supporters to contribute directly to its journalism. The model is the independent-local-news formula: keep costs lean, stay close to the community, and diversify revenue across advertising, print and reader support rather than depending on any single stream.

Editorial focus and coverage areas

Stroud Times covers Stroud and the Five Valleys — including Nailsworth, Stonehouse and Dursley — with the full range of local news: district and town council decisions, planning and development, policing and courts, health and education, business, culture, and community life. Its journalism is distinguished by thoroughness: properly attended council meetings, fully reported court cases, and features that take the area's issues seriously. The title's anti-clickbait stance is editorial as well as commercial — headlines describe the story rather than teasing it, and the reporting prioritises accuracy over speed.

Notable journalists and contributors

The title was founded by Ash Loveridge, Matt Bigwood and Carl Hewlett, all formerly of the Stroud News and Journal, whose local knowledge and contacts gave the new publication instant credibility. The team has since grown: Faye Hatcher, formerly of BBC Radio Gloucestershire, joined the title, bringing broadcast experience to the newsroom. The founders' backgrounds in the area's established paper meant Stroud Times launched with the reporting chops and community relationships that new titles usually take years to build.

Audience and reach

Stroud Times serves the Five Valleys' communities — a dispersed, civically engaged population across Stroud, Nailsworth, Stonehouse, Dursley and the surrounding villages. Its 100,000-plus monthly page views (reported in 2022) represented remarkable penetration for a new title in a market town area, and its print edition — 10,000 copies twice a month — extends its reach to readers who prefer paper. The title's audience includes the area's famously active civic society: campaigners, councillors, traders and community groups.

The print edition and the Cheltenham Post partnership

In June 2022 Stroud Times launched a print edition — 10,000 copies published twice a month — in partnership with the Cheltenham Post, the independent title run by Mark Cuzner and Nick Clarke under All4One Media. The partnership gave Stroud Times access to print production and distribution expertise, while the Cheltenham Post gained a sister title in the Stroud Valleys. The move was counterintuitive in an era of print decline, but it reflected the founders' understanding of their market: many Five Valleys residents, particularly older ones, still prefer a physical paper, and a free print edition reaches the digitally excluded. The print-digital combination has become central to the title's identity.

Business model

Stroud Times' revenues span digital advertising, print advertising in the fortnightly edition, and reader donations via the scheme launched in August 2026. The diversified model — no single revenue stream dominant — gives the independent title resilience. Its advertising is sold primarily to local businesses across the Five Valleys, whose support reflects the title's deep community roots.

Digital platforms, podcasts and newsletters

Stroud Times publishes through stroudtimes.com and maintains active social media channels, where its community following engages vigorously with local stories. The website's clean, readable design reflects the anti-clickbait philosophy — news presented plainly, without the clutter of auto-playing video and intrusive ads that characterise much corporate local news. Email newsletters deliver the title's journalism to subscribers' inboxes.

Awards and recognition

Stroud Times' fifth anniversary in March 2026 was itself a mark of distinction — few independent local news start-ups of the 2020s have reached that milestone. The title's growth from a three-person website to a multi-platform publication with print, digital and donation revenues has been noted across the local-news sector as an example of how to build sustainable independent journalism. Its founders' reputation, carried over from the Stroud News and Journal, gave it a head start in credibility that it has more than repaid.

Community and industry role

Stroud Times matters beyond Stroud as a proof of concept: three local journalists, leaving a corporate-owned paper, can build a sustainable independent title by promising quality and keeping that promise. Its anti-clickbait positioning was both an editorial stance and a commercial insight — readers were hungry for local news that respected their intelligence. For the Five Valleys, the title provides something the area hadn't reliably had: dedicated, professional, independent journalism accountable to the community it serves.

Outlook

Stroud Times enters its sixth year with a print edition, a growing digital audience and a new donation scheme — a diversified independent publisher in a sector where so many have failed. As the Five Valleys face the familiar pressures of development, services and local democracy, the title's thorough, community-rooted journalism remains essential. Its founders' 2021 bet — that Stroud would support quality local news — continues to pay off.

Stroud Times' fifth anniversary in March 2026 marked it as one of the independent local news success stories of the 2020s — a three-person start-up that grew into a multi-platform publisher with a fortnightly print edition, six-figure monthly web traffic and a reader donation scheme. Founders Ash Loveridge, Matt Bigwood and Carl Hewlett's 2021 bet — that Stroud would support quality, anti-clickbait local journalism — was vindicated by the title's growth: 100,000-plus monthly page views within its first years, the June 2022 print launch (10,000 copies twice a month) in partnership with Mark Cuzner and Nick Clarke's Cheltenham Post, and the August 2026 donation scheme adding reader revenue. The arrival of Faye Hatcher from BBC Radio Gloucestershire strengthened the newsroom with broadcast experience. The title's formula — thorough, community-focused reporting without the sensationalism and clutter of corporate-owned rivals — proved that the market for serious local news was underserved rather than absent. For the Five Valleys, from Stroud to Nailsworth, Stonehouse to Dursley, the paper provides the dedicated scrutiny and celebration that the area's civic life needs. And for the local news industry, Stroud Times stands as evidence for the proposition its founders started with: that readers can tell the difference between journalism and clickbait, and will support the former when it's done well.