How to get your school positive
coverage in the local press

1. The first point is that you must have a member of staff who takes on this job, and sees it as his/her responsibility. If it is just left to anyone, it won’t happen.

2. There are obvious stories that happen each year.  They vary from school to school but many schools will include these events that can be written up

   • The school play
   • The school concert
   • The school trips to interesting location
   • A visit from musicians, TIE company, or other outside group
   • The exam results (if showing an improvement)
   • The inspectorate report (if showing an improvement)
   • Fund raising events
   • Gap year activities by students
   • Achievements by ex-pupils – or an appeal in the press for ex-students to get in touch and let the school know what they have been doing
   •  Growth of the school
   •  Parent/Teacher activities and events
   •  Sports day
   •  Swimming gala
   •  New staff arriving, retirements, staff leaving.

With this collection of events, there will always be at least one press release to be issued each half term, and that is all that is needed. If something extra happens you can put out more – but one a half term will keep you in touch with the local paper.

3. To start the process, you need to contact the local paper and get the name of the journalist who will cover local school events.  Get his/her email address, so you can forward the story on.  If you have more than one local paper include them all, and also include a BBC Local Radio station if you have one.

4. Press releases take a standard format.  But before you do any writing, study the local paper/s so that you get a feel of how the stories can work.   Also have a look at www.ukeducationnews.co.uk   This publication carries one or two school stories most days, and you will be able to see how the stories are written.

5. Have a title that is really interesting.   In fact spend as long on the title as on the rest of the piece – for this is going to catch the journalists’ eye, and he/she will consider using it for the actual newspaper story.  

6. End with the name and address of the school, the school’s website, email and phone number.  The newspaper might not run all of these, but they are there if they want them.

7. Send in your press release to Tony@schools.co.uk so that it can be carried on UK Education News.   But again, don’t do this without look at how that website works. 

8. All press releases should be sent as an attached Word file, so that the journalist can handle it easily.  If you are sending pictures, attach them as separate files – not integrated into the text.

9. Having written your press release, read it through, and then compare it with the local paper.  Can you imagine it sitting within the newspaper exactly as written.  (Remember journalists want stories they can put in without any extra work – so make life easy for them).

10. Don’t be put off if your story does not get into the paper – keep trying.  And go back to the journalist – not to ask why it wasn’t run – but to check that the details you have are right, and to ask if there is anything particular they are looking for.

Contact Information

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