The North Norfolk News has been nominated for a prestigious regional media award.

It has been shortlisted in the Weekly Paid for Newspaper of the Year category of the EDF Energy East Of England Media Awards.

The other finalists are our sister paper from the Archant stable, the Lowestoft Journal, along with the Brentwood Gazette and Essex Chronicle.

News editor Richard Batson said: 'Our team has done a terrific job this year, covering big stories, as well as grass roots community issues, along with some terrific photography and providing a sounding board for debate through our letters page and website - so this nomination is a reward for all their hard work.'

Glenn Ebrey, editor of the Croydon Advertiser and a member of the judging panel, said: 'We were looking for creativity, quality, and originality across the categories. We saw some fantastic work in amongst the entries and it was a tough task to whittle them down to a shortlist.'

News publishers Archant Norfolk lead the field in the awards shortlistings, with the Eastern Daily Press nominated for website, campaign, daily newspaper and two front page of the year awards, along with individuals shortlisted for digital, specialist and sports journalist, photographer, designer, columnist and feature writer of the year.

The EDP vies for the title of daily newspaper alongside Cambridge News and East Anglian Daily Times in the annual awards, held in association with Hold the Front Page.

The EDF Energy Regional Media Awards, now in their ninth year, honour the best in journalism across Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Norfolk and Suffolk. There were more than 200 entries for this year's awards, across 20 categories.

The winners will be announced at a ceremony on February 27.

Other categories with Norfolk contenders include:

Newcomer of the Year:

Emma Burrows, ITV Anglia

Lauren Hewitt, Heart East Anglia

Digital Journalist of the Year:

Michael Bailey, Archant Norfolk

Peter Raven, Archant Norfolk

Specialist Journalist of the Year:

Dan Grimmer, Eastern Daily Press / Norwich Evening News

Elodie Harper, ITV Anglia

News photographer of the Year:

Ian Burt, Archant

Simon Finlay, Archant Norfolk

Bill Smith, Eastern Daily Press

Designer of the Year:

Patrick Baker, Archant

Annette Hudson, Archant Norfolk

Sports Journalist of the Year:

Michael Bailey, Archant Norfolk

Paddy Davitt, Archant Norfolk

Columnist of the Year:

Stacia Briggs, Eastern Daily Press

Feature Writer of the Year:

Rowan Mantell, Eastern Daily Press

Television Journalist of the Year:

Neil Bradford, BBC Look East

Sally Chidzoy, BBC TV East

Natalie Gray, ITV Anglia

Serena Sandhu, ITV Anglia

Front Page of the year:

Eastern Daily Press 'My Daddy'

Eastern Daily Press 'The Scandal of Mobile Blackspots'

Norwich Evening News 'Chronicles of Mariju-arnia'

Community Campaign of the year:

Eastern Daily Press 'Ambulance Watch'

ITV Anglia 'Text Santa'

Website of the Year:

Archant Norfolk pinkun.com

Eastern Daily Press edp24.co.uk

Radio News or Current Affairs Programme of the Year:

Heart East Anglia News

Television News or Current Affairs Programme of the Year:

ITV News Anglia

Daily Newspaper of the Year:

Eastern Daily Press