THE creators of an East Cornwall newsletter were 'delighted' to learn it had beaten off stiff competition to be awarded second place in a nationwide parish magazine competition.

The Old School and Stoke Climsland News went up against 710 other entries in the National Parish Magazine Awards to come second place for best overall magazine and first for best print quality.

Based in Stoke Climsland's community centre, the volunteer-run Old School News is published ten times a year and has a circulation of more than 4,000 throughout Callington, Stoke Climsland, Gunnislake, and Harrowbarrow.

Having started in 1998 to promote the Old School, the free magazine has expanded from 20 pages to 44 and offers a blend of humour, local news and local club reports.

Editor Derrick Parsons, a former research scientist who has been involved in the newsletter for several years, said: 'It started with no advertising, a small circulation and was deliberately targeted to activities in the Old School Centre.

'As years went by the remit broadened, circulation increased and we are supported by advertising.

'We have a circulation of 4,400 a month and also quite an extensive email distribution to places such as Tasmania, Vancouver, West Coast America — it goes all round the world.'

Mr Parsons said the team is often complimented on the newsletter, and when they heard about the awards, they decided to enter.

He said: 'It's a true community effort in every sense.

'All the contributors and the people who put the Old School News together are volunteers, from Sharon and Jill who handle the advertising, to Hilary who deals with distribution, to Alan who edits the copy, and all the volunteers managing the finances and delivering copies door to door.

'We do depend on a great number of volunteers.

Derrick said the team was working towards 'constant evolution' of the publication.

'We want to introduce change all the time to keep the readers interested,' he said.

'We have got a junior reporter starting this year — we are keen to have the magazine covering all age groups in the parish. We are always open to suggestions.

'The team is delighted to achieve this recognition.

'Despite running the odd controversial story, I think we are on the whole highly regarded — people say they always look forward to reading it.'

North Cornwall MP Dan Rogerson described The Old School and Stoke Climsland News's triumph as 'well deserved' for a 'fantastic local magazine'.

He said: 'I am delighted at the magazine's success in the National Parish Magazine Awards.

'As a regular reader of — and contributor for — The Old School and Stoke Climsland News, I know how hard everyone works to make sure that people in the parish enjoy a fantastic local magazine. 

'I'd like to congratulate everyone involved with the magazine on this well-deserved award and for all their hard work, and wish The Old School and Stoke Climsland News all the best for 2014.'

Designer of the newsletter John Wilmut said: 'It's inclusive, it's meant to speak to everybody in the parish. It acts as a bit of the glue that holds the parish together.

'We are not simply acting as a bog standard reprint of events of what people are doing, somehow we have managed to convince contributors to write things to appeal to the whole parish rather than just to their own club members.

'We would also particularly like to thank our printers, The Printing Press in Plymouth, who have given us absolutely excellent service for years.

'We owe our print quality entirely to them — we couldn't have won this print award without them.'