Why we're asking you to pay 30p a week more for your Bishop's Stortford Independent

When we launched the Indie in 2017, we were determined to do things differently – but always with the community at heart.

We made a pledge that our journalism would be truthful, transparent and accountable.

Today we need to honour that commitment by being upfront about the fact that from next week we will be asking you to pay 30p more for your Indie.

While we are reaching more readers than ever before through the combination of our newspaper and website, we also face rising costs – and it is no secret that newspapers face steep competition from the likes of Google and Facebook.

We want to continue to bring you the high standard of community journalism you have come to expect of us. We sincerely hope that you value your Indie enough to feel that £1.30 a week is a fair price to pay in future.

Price rises are never welcome, but we are far from alone in feeling the financial fall-out from the pandemic.

We strive every week to be a voice for the many sectors of our local community – with your help, we can continue to be that voice.

At the same time, we can soften the blow of our cover price increase for loyal readers through subscription offers. You can choose from...

PRINT & DIGITAL PACKAGE

This includes vouchers to exchange for the Indie at your favoured retailer each week, PLUS a digital edition of the paper to read on your mobile, tablet, laptop or desktop PC PLUS our IM News app, which features digital editions of all Iliffe Media titles. Subscribe TODAY for £5.99 a month. Visit iliffemediasubs.co.uk.

DIGITAL PACKAGE

You can read the digital edition of the Indie on any device every week and get our IM News app. It’s a fantastic, environmentally-friendly way to enjoy your Indie – and if a relative, friend or neighbour finds it hard to get to the shops right now, this could be the ideal solution. Sign up for this at subsaver.co.uk and you will get your first month FREE, then pay just £4.99 a month.

The app – part of both packages – comes with daily editions, a live feed of breaking news, national stories and interactive puzzles.

We really are thankful for your continued support. With your help, we can continue to serve our community long into the future.