Home About Portfolio Contact

Hello, I'm Holly

Freelance Journalist & Journalism Coordinator | BBC Three Counties Radio 

Multimedia Journalism Student | News Associates 

Based in Bedfordshire 

Explore My Portfolio

About Me

Work

Contact

Articles

BBC News •

Radio 1's Big Weekend will bring success for Luton, locals told

Luton Borough Council estimates the festival, headlined by Coldplay, Raye and Chase & Status, could bring £4m to the town's economy. About 100,000 tickets have been sold for the spectacle, which will be held at Stockwood Park in the town on 24-26 May. Gerard McCleave, the authority's corporate director for inclusive economy, was at the meeting at the Stockwood Discovery Centre. He praised the preparation work by the BBC and his own council.

"We will continue to work with with residents right up
South West Londoner •

Domestic abuse survivor voices loss of confidence in Metropolitan Police

A domestic abuse survivor from West London has said she does not trust the police to handle crimes of violence against women and girls.

This comes after new data revealed low rates of women’s confidence in the police to deal with violence against women and girls.

Amja was a victim of domestic abuse and coercive control and is now the founder of Amja Unabashedly, an artistic project which aims to empower people out of domestic abuse and other trauma.

She said: “I have a lived experience of the
BBC News •

Buckinghamshire funeral directors start choir to reduce loneliness

CPJ Field began weekly singing sessions at the Church of the Holy Spirit in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, as part of an ongoing 'Never Alone' campaign.

The choir meets in the daytime which Maria Butler, who started the choir, said has been an important aspect.

She added: "The people we attract don't want to come out in the evenings, they are lonely, they do feel isolated and this is the perfect venue for it."

Ms Butler, community champion for CPJ Field, said there "aren't any other choirs in th
BBC News •

Chicksands: US airman sad over UK base closure

A former US airman has said he is sad about the closure of the UK military base where he found lifelong love.

The airman said he had never been to England before and other than films knew very little about the country.

"The only thing I knew about England was from watching old films... Fog with trench coats on," he recalled.

The then 19-year-old lived on the base for about two and a half years working as an air policeman.

"It was very basic, you had a bed, a footlocker, a standing locker and
South West Londoner •

WATCH: How are Thames communities tackling plastic pollution?

At least 200 tons of waste is removed from the River Thames each year, much of which is plastic pollution and microplastic.

A study in 2020 revealed that the Thames has some of the highest recorded levels of microplastics for any river in the world.

Scientists have estimated that, in some places, 94,000 microplastics per second flow down the river.

Although the full impact to human health is unknown, microplastics can cause damage to human cells and have been detected in human blood and lungs
South West Londoner •

Unlocking understanding: Neurodivergence in prisons

Official figures estimate that around 25% of adults in prison have either diagnosed or undiagnosed Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).

However, many of those that specialise with the issue of neurodivergence in the Prison System believe that, if the curtain was pulled back and it was looked at in closer detail, that figure would be considerably higher.

According to Revolving Doors, an organisation that champions long-term solutions for justice reform, it is estimated that around h
South West Londoner •

The rise of women's rugby

That’s what the coach said to the tag rugby team one frosty Sunday morning at training.

My sister and I were the only two girls on the team and, from that moment, the rugby ball was flung at us from all angles whether we liked it or not.

I scored my first try that day. I hadn’t touched the ball weeks before that and without that added incentive, the promise of double points, I doubt I would have that day either.

I like to think girl’s rugby has come a long way in the last 15 years. It would m
The Times •

Will humans visit Mars? Tim Peake says they will by end of 2030s

Tim Peake, Britain’s longest-serving astronaut, has declared that there are no insurmountable obstacles to landing humans on Mars, predicting that people will set foot on the red planet by the end of the 2030s.

Peake, who retired from active duty earlier this year and still acts as an ambassador for human spaceflight, said that public space agencies or even billionaire-owned private firms just needed to “get on and do it” to launch a mission to Mars.

Speaking at the launch of his Channel 5 pro
The Times •

Rwanda deportation ‘better than returning home’ for asylum seekers

An Afghan man who arrived in the UK in a small boat said that he would not mind being sent to Rwanda as “at least I could build a life for myself there”.

Momin Qauymi, 21, a car mechanic from Jalalabad, is living in Napier Barracks in Folkestone, Kent, after paying £1,300 to people smugglers to cross the Channel in a dinghy last year.

Qauymi said he came to the UK because the Taliban were harassing and discriminating against his family and he was unable to get an education. He travelled throug
South West Londoner •

From paint to peaceful protest: is Extinction Rebellion cooling down?

Colourful placards, picket lines, workshops and 100,000 people. It seems Extinction Rebellion is planning to leave the paint and glue behind, at an organised peaceful protest outside the Houses of Parliament this month.

The group have labelled the event, taking place 21-24 April, as ‘The Big One’ and it invites everyone to “unite to survive” in non-violent, direct action which will focus on numbers and attendance over disruption.

Just four weeks after seven Extinction Rebellion protestors were
South West Londoner •

Ex-officer criticises the Met Police as mental health figures soar

The number of Met Police working days lost due to mental health has increased by almost a third in the last four years.

According to figures released on 21 September by the Mayor’s office, the total of mental-health related absences among Met Police officers and staff has increased by 30% between the financial years 2018/19 to 2021/22.

Stress, anxiety and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) are among some of the mental health issues that have caused these absences to jump from from 81,576 to