THE Kent Messenger Group's political correspondent Paul Francis has been voted Shepherd Neame Kent Journalist of the Year at an awards ceremony held in Faversham.

His winning entry was described as "entertaining, well put-together, well-written in a punchy style, although the subject matter is potentially dry and boring". Paul, who has been the KM Group's political man since 1995, won £250, a silver salver and plenty of Sheps beer.

Alan Watkins, former press chief with the now-defunct Gillingham council and now a reporter with the KM Group's Gravesend Messenger and Dartford Messenger, was highly commended in the same category.

Judges Lord Bill Deedes of the Daily Telegraph, broadcaster Bob Holness, Bob Driscoll and Martin Jackson, both formerly with the Daily Mail, and Daily Mail show business editor Alison Boshoff - a former Kent journalist of the year - praised both reporters. The judges commended Alan's "well-documented investigative coverage of local politics and education issues".

Helen Cockersole, a reporter at the Kent Messenger's office in Maidstone, was highly commended in the Young Journalist of the Year category. Judges praised her "straighforward no-nonsense reporting".

Mike Bennett, chief reporter and former community editor of the Ashford-based Kentish Express, another KMG title, received a special judges' award for his services to journalism over the past 40 years.

Reporters from Meridian Broadcasting picked up two awards. David Glencorse won the Bishops Finger Kent Broadcast Journalist of the Year award and colleague Charles Lambert walked off with the Spitfire Sports Journalist of the Year title.

Dennis Fowle, editor of the Bearsted-based Downs Mail, won the Campaign of the Year Award for his successful Jade Crossing Appeal to build a pedestrian bridge over an accident blackspot on the A249 at Detling following the deaths of eight-year old Jade Hobbs and her grandmother.

Alex Hoad, of the Folkestone Herald, was named Kent Young Journalist of the Year.

This year's 14th annual awards attracted nearly 100 entries from 86 journalists working on five radio stations, two television news programmes and 22 newspaper titles.

Mr Jackson, who lives in Hawkhurst and is a regular commentator on the media, said it had been a bad year for national newspapers and broadcasters but the standard of journalism in the county "continues to improve". Lord Deedes added that regional journalists had "held their corner very well indeed".