'I dropped out of school but now I'm at Cambridge'
The values my mum has taught me are that you need to push yourself and just do it and she convinced me to apply to Cambridge. When I told her I had got in she cried.
About Me
I have been a journalist for 17 years, the last 13 of which have been at the BBC. The Guardian Media Group sponsored me to study for a masters in print journalism at City University and after graduating I worked as a multimedia journalist at The Press Association (PA) in London and Manchester. After leaving PA to join the BBC, I worked for Newsround, BBC Breakfast and the Six and Ten O'Clock News before I started my current role as a senior journalist and team manager for the BBC website. I write online news and feature articles and also work as a news editor, sub editor and line manager. I was also a lecturer in journalism at the University of Essex until recently.
I live on the Essex/Suffolk border with my husband, two young children, a dog and chickens. I enjoy wild swimming, paddleboarding and singing in a community choir. I have run the London marathon twice, most recently in 2021. I volunteer as a helper at my local Rainbows/Brownies group and work part-time as a support worker for people with Down's syndrome through the charity Project 21.
Features
Explore a selection of my writing work below.
'I'm praying interest rates have peaked now'
Interest rates have been held at 5.25% by the Bank of England, after 14 consecutive rises. But they are still at their highest for 15 years. How are homeowners coping?
How Essex found itself at the heart of the school concrete crisis
Why is Essex so badly affected by the concrete crisis?
Charlie Mackesy: 'I was hiding in the toilet before I won my Oscar'
"I was overwhelmed. I would get letters from school children, from prisons and from doctors and nurses who are just so brave and they said the book was helping them through the pandemic. I keep them all in a file. I still look at them at night. Book sales are not important to me, but these letters mean everything."
"I had someone come up to me and say, 'I just want you to know that I decided to stay, I'm still here today because of this book'. Someone else told me I have given people licence to
"I had someone come up to me and say, 'I just want you to know that I decided to stay, I'm still here today because of this book'. Someone else told me I have given people licence to
Mortgage crisis: 'We can't pay an extra £1,400 a month'
"My husband and I both work and luckily we've got savings but we're going to have to really cut back and be really cautious. We just don't know when things are going to get better and we might have to consider selling our house in the future," she says.
"I got a letter saying my mortgage was going up from £289 to £1,150 a month," she says. "Now my mum is having to sell her house too and we are hoping to buy a house together in Norfolk because we can't afford anything in Hertfordshire.
"We don'
"I got a letter saying my mortgage was going up from £289 to £1,150 a month," she says. "Now my mum is having to sell her house too and we are hoping to buy a house together in Norfolk because we can't afford anything in Hertfordshire.
"We don'
'Sharing my egg-freezing journey nearly broke me'
Vicky Pattison says she does not regret sharing her egg-freezing journey, despite negative messages.
Instagram hackers defeated by kindness, businesswoman says
A woman who lost her Instagram account after being hacked said she was "so grateful" to thousands of strangers who have saved her small business.
"It has changed my life. It has kept my business going. It just goes to show that kindness can conquer all."
She launched her business Rose and Guy eight years ago and gradually built up followers, with 95% of her business coming through the social media site.
When hackers took over her account, she refused to give in to their demands for money and
"It has changed my life. It has kept my business going. It just goes to show that kindness can conquer all."
She launched her business Rose and Guy eight years ago and gradually built up followers, with 95% of her business coming through the social media site.
When hackers took over her account, she refused to give in to their demands for money and
'I hit rock bottom while trying to have a baby'
Infertility can devastate people's mental health, relationships, finances and career, a charity says.
'I've been stuck in my bedroom for two years'
A young woman with a rare disease says she is not being supported to have any quality of life.
'I couldn't close my lips after botched filler'
"With the standards of our generation and social media these days, I just thought I wanted it done. There is this massive pressure and so much talk about it. It just seems like the normal thing to do," she says.
'Breastfeeding at the marathon was so emotional'
Louise Appleton, 31, from St Albans, breastfed her six-month-old daughter Emma several times during the marathon, which she finished in just over six hours, having spent around half an hour of that feeding.
She could not find the dedicated breastfeeding tents and ended up feeding her daughter on a bench and in the back of a St John's Ambulance.
She could not find the dedicated breastfeeding tents and ended up feeding her daughter on a bench and in the back of a St John's Ambulance.
'Long Covid has left me housebound and invisible'
Women are more likely to suffer from long Covid but being vaccinated almost halves the risk of developing the condition, a University of East Anglia study has found.
The mothers supporting each other through child separation
Some 21 years ago Penelope's heart broke into pieces and it has never fully healed, she says. Her four-year-old daughter was taken away after a court ruling, leaving her bereft.
'I begged for gas and air but got paracetemol'
"The lack of communication was unbelievable. No-one had mentioned this to me during my pregnancy. During my induction, I asked if it was true and the midwife said 'yes but you can have pethidine instead or an epidural', but that wasn't what I wanted," she says.
'I don't want a funeral, it's a waste of money'
Cremations without a service are on the rise, but others say they need a funeral to deal with grief.
The manor house where 60 people live together
A group of 60 people who live together in a large house say they are thriving during the cost-of-living crisis.
'My autism made me an artist but I wanted a family'
"Socially I was still struggling to make friends and I was trying to fit in. People actually want to be different at art school. But I was so different that it was annoying. I was always a little bit on the outside."
'People say I don't look like I'm going blind'
When Katie Berrill was told she was going blind it came completely out of the blue.
At the age of 32, she was diagnosed with Stargardt disease after a routine optician appointment.
At the age of 32, she was diagnosed with Stargardt disease after a routine optician appointment.
The Norfolk village crumbling into the sea
A nurse says she is heartbroken that nothing can be done to save her house from coastal erosion.
'I'm spending £1900 a month on the cannabis keeping my son alive'
Families of epileptic children say they struggle to pay for the medical cannabis keeping them alive.
'I decided I'd had enough of hiding my real self'
People who are newly going through hair loss, or sometimes parents, often message me on Instagram. I always make it very clear that every person's experience is unique.
'My life changed eight years ago on Christmas Eve'
The years following my amputation were very dark and very difficult. I thought it would just be a case of learning to walk on the prosthetics, but I also needed support with my mental health.
Wild swimmers are getting sick from sewage, campaigners say
Wild swimmers are increasingly getting sick from sewage pumped into rivers and seas, according to an environmental charity.
'We're not used to seeing disabled people as sexy'
I spent the first few years trying to get my life back on track, physically, mentally and financially. This last year, especially since moving to London, has felt like the first time I have actually been able to enjoy my life again.
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