Media giant Reach plc is creating more than 50 jobs with the expansion of its hyperlocal news platform InYourArea.
It is the latest digital investment by Reach, which in November announced a major expansion of its Live news sites.
InYourArea was launched in 2017 and offers users personalised feeds of local news and information including local planning applications and travel updates.
Those news stories come from a range of regional publishers, including Reach titles. A typical London feed might pull in links from Evening Standard, Time Out, Londonist and various neighbourhood publications including Reach's MyLondon .
Reach, the parent company of BusinessLive and brands ranging from the Mirror to the Manchester Evening News, says InYourArea already has 2.5m engaged users and consistently shows double digit monthly growth.
Among the 57 jobs are 10 new editorial roles, including a community editor, an online community editor and several community content curators. They will work under recently-appointed editor-in-chief Ed Walker to help accelerate the site's growth.
Those editorial roles are initially available in Bristol, Liverpool and Manchester, with further locations still to be announced. Around 43 commercial roles are based in Nottingham, with four technical and administration jobs based in London.
Mr Walker said: "The appetite for neighbourhood level news is strong in the UK. We see this consistently reflected in our regional audience data and by the success InYourArea has already achieved.
"Through this platform we have a way of delivering a personalised feed of the latest local news, information and more to every postcode in the UK. I look forward to working with the team to grow our user base in areas already served by our ‘Live’ network, as well as in regions new to Reach.”
Jim Mullen, chief executive officer of Reach, said: "InYourArea has already shown impressive growth in a relatively short time, and this further expansion extends our leadership journey in the growing hyperlocal sector.
“Through these investments, we are continuing to bolster a highly engaged online readership in every corner of the country, while also securing the future of our trusted regional journalism.”
For more information on the InYourArea roles, visit the Reach careers website.
