The winners of the 2024 SPA national awards have been announced.

From hard-hitting investigations to insightful interviews, and thought-provoking culture pieces to stunning print design, the quality of work produced showcased the finest talent on campuses across the UK and Ireland.

The awards were sponsored by a range of industry bodies, including News Associates, Newsworks, Cardiff, PA Training, Bloomberg, News UK, RockBox, ABSW, Savanta, Women in Journalism, William Reed and the University of Sheffield.

With more than 1,200 entries this year, they were the UK’s biggest journalism awards. Nominations were judged by a diverse range of top editors and journalists from media organisations including the BBC, The Bureau of Investigative Journalism, Sky News, The Guardian, The Times, OK Magazine and openDemocracy.

Judges paid tribute to the high standards of work submitted, saying many pieces would fit perfectly into national publications.

Best Publication Award 

Sponsored by... News Associates

• Winner: The Student
• Highly Commended: The Glasgow Guardian

Billy Dowling-Reid Award

Sponsored by... Newsworks

• Winner: Fintan Hogan, Roar News
• Highly Commended: Sehmar (Semi) Tesfazgy, The Badger
• Special Mention: Lucy Jackson, The Student

Best Reporter Award

Sponsored by... PA Media Academy

• Winner: Josh Pizzuto-Pomaco, The Gaudie
• Highly Commended: Charlotte Kent, Trinity News

Best News Story Award

Sponsored by... Newsworks

• Winner: Josh Pizzuto-Pomaco, The Gaudie. “Modern Languages Department on the chopping block as UoA faces £15m shortfall)”
• Highly Commended: Archie Clarke and Luke Chapman, The Boar, on the Sherbourne stabbing
• Special Mention: Olivia Mason-Myhill, Exeposé, on academic misconduct

Best Specialist Publication Award 

Sponsored by… William Reed

• Winner: Strand Magazine
• Highly Commended: Muse (Nouse)

Best Newcomer Individual Award (Rising Star)

Sponsored by... Savanta

• Winner: Semhar (Semi) Tesfazgy, The Badger
• Highly Commended: Daisy Outram, The Oxford Student
• Special Mention: Molly Cantwell, Limerick Voice
• Special Mention: Luke Alsford, Palatinate

Best Newcomer Publication Award 

Sponsored by... RockBox

• Winner: People Behind the Headlines
• Highly Commended: Women’s Wrongs

Best Student Photographer Award 

• Winner: Mia Wilson, Quench Magazine
• Highly Commended: Ailish O’Leary Austin, The Mancunion
• Special Mention: Emma Carmichael, Roar News

Best Magazine Design Award 

• Winner: The Croft
• Highly Commended: I,Science

Best Newspaper Design Award 

Sponsored by… The Times & Sunday Times

• Winner: The Gaudie
• Highly Commended: The Mancunion

Best Overall Digital Media Award

Sponsored by... News Associates

• Winner: Roar News
• Highly Commended: The Badger

Best Website Award

• Winner: The Mancunion
• Highly Commended: Exeposé

Best Sports Section Award 

Sponsored by… PA Media Academy

• Winner: Palatinate
• Highly Commended: The Student

Best Sports Reporter Award 

• Winner: Joseph Saunders, Palatinate
• Highly Commended: Arthur Ferridge, The Courier

Best Investigation Award 

• Winner: “KCL Tories Event Features Fascist Armband And Far-Right Language” by Daisy Eastlake and Diana Rajabalinia, Roar News
• Highly Commended: “University spends millions on rooms sitting empty” by Jeevan Farthing and Athina Bohner, Glasgow Guardian 
• Special Mention: “Chinese surveillance cameras at UofG linked to human rights abuse allegations and security fears” by Athina Bohner, Glasgow Guardian

Best Science Publication or Section Award

Sponsored by... The Association of British Science Writers (ABSW)

• Winner: The Courier
• Highly Commended: The Glasgow Guardian

Best Science or Tech Piece Award

Sponsored by... The Association of British Science Writers (ABSW)

• Winner: ”Trust me, I'm an Exorcist” by Zoya Gul, RUMS Review
• Highly Commended: “Bloody hell: period products tested with blood” - Eve Zebedee, The Glasgow Guardian

Best Culture Publication or Section Award

• Winner: Quench
• Highly Commended: The Saint
• Special Mention: The Gryphon

Best Feature Award

• Winner: “Lost in Translation:  Exchange Students Condemn College’s Poor Communication” by Phoebe Pascoe and Hosanna Boulter, The University Times
• Highly Commended: “‘I have even considered elocution lessons’: Durham students describe pressure to modify regional accents” by Luke Alsford, Elizabeth McBride and Nicole Ireland, Palatinate

Best Comment Piece Award

• Winner: “Apology to my mum; or, why I’ll be arrested” by Cameron Baillie, The Beaver
• Highly Commended: “Women should not be shamed for using disposable period products” by Ruby Topalian, Trinity News

Best Interview Award

Sponsored by... University of Sheffield

• Winner: “What’s the Big Issue? A Frank conversation on homelessness” by Eden Fall-Bailey, The Boar
• Highly Commended: “100 years of Jaconelli’s” by Jeevan Farthing, The Glasgow Guardian, University of Glasgow
• Special Mention: “Sexual abuse campaigner Ellie Wilson nominated for UofG World Changing Alumni Award” by Niamh Flanagan, The Glasgow Guardian

Best Culture Writer Award

• Winner: Phoebe Pascoe, The University Times
• Highly Commended: Jeevan Farthing (The Glasgow Guardian)

Best Lifestyle Piece Award 

• Winner: “The Language of Cooking” by Selina Chen, Cherwell
• Highly Commended: “UTIs: the What, the How, and the Why Me” - Lucy Spencer, The Badger

Best Creative Piece 

• Winner: “Greetings and Goodbye” by Zoé Barret, The Boar
• Highly Commended: “Keir Starmer... A Day in the Life” by Ben Scanlan, The Cheese Grater
• Special Mention: “Dear Letter Writing, We’re Sorry That You’re Leaving”, by Rosie Miller, The Saint

Best Arts or Culture Piece

• Winner: “The History of Sussex Music: From Jimi Hendrix to… Nothing?” by Harry Turnbull and Isabella Poderico, The Badger
• Highly Commended: “Turn of the Tide: The ‘Decline’ of Public Baths” by Thomas Gibbs, The Saint
• Special Mention: “Girl Dinner: Should we be concerned?” by Rachael Alvey, Label

Best Project or Initiative

Sponsored by... Women In Journalism

• Winner: Podcasts by Palatinate
• Highly Commended: ROAR News App
• Special Mention: The Gaudie’s Digital Archive

Featured image courtesy of Rory Chinn