I’m The Knot’s No.1 Fan
From Founder to Paid Subscriber
I’ve become a subscriber of a great publication in Stoke and North Staffordshire.
It’s called The Knot.
Since I handed over the reins to Helen and The Lead team I’ve sat back and become an avid reader of the publication I always wanted to exist in the area I live in. The Knot has come a long way since our first ever article in May 2024!!
I read every single issue, finding out what’s going on, what events are coming up and I’m increasingly interested to read the next feature article out on Wednesdays.
For example, I actually didn’t know about the wildfires in the Roaches. I see the dry land all around me, I love the Peak District, I love the green spaces we have in Staffordshire and was pleased to see this issue being raised and spoken about. Albeit deeply concerned for our climate, nature and wildlife.
Calls for greater action to protect Staffordshire's wildlife from extreme weather
After Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire experienced record-breaking temperatures, it becomes harder to ignore that extreme weather is here to stay. North Staffordshire peaked at 33.9°C last week after a “heat dome” stationary area of high pressure parked over western Europe, with a critical incident declared at Royal Stoke due to hospital equipment failures and
Hearing that the owner of Vellichor books, Mitch, had a dirty, steaming book thrown through the door of his bookshop and that Pride displays are being actively taken down… well I didn’t know this was happening and it made me… think. Safe to say, I didn’t see this as “good news”, nor did I particularly love reading it. But, I LOVED reading it, I loved that we are covering it. That we are informing people and contributing our bit to the important layer of accountability that local journalism provides.
'It feels like Section 28': community speaks out on Staffs County Council Pride display removal
The removal of Pride displays from Staffordshire's libraries has sparked dismay among LGBTQ+ residents, authors, booksellers and campaigners, with critics warning the decision risks making some people feel less visible and less welcome in their communities.
“Surely actively taking something down is spending more resources rather than saving them, which is what the new council kept banging on about? Is this stuff going on in the Reform-led Staffordshire County Council, a bit… weird?”
These articles have made me think, made me question and given me access to information and knowledge that I didn’t have before. That’s the whole point. That’s why I always believed independent news and local journalism is so so important.
Andy Burnham is now PM. What does this mean for us in Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire?
The first northern PM since Harold Wilson left office in 1976, the newly-elected MP for Makerfield, Andy Burnham, made his opening speech as Prime Minister this Monday, promising to decentralise power away from Westminster with a No 10 in Manchester, a bold plan to end homelessness, and the biggest building of social housing since the post-war period. The new PM has talked about this moment being ‘a circuit breaker for Britain,’ bringing forward some of the biggest changes we’ve seen over the last 40 years.
When I started The Knot, this is what I wanted. I wanted a publication that would champion our area. I began that with the zeal of positivity and good news, yet I always wanted to add some robust reporting on serious issues to it too. Now we have that and I get to delight in reading it.
I get to still be involved too, which is fun. I emailed the team the other day after we got a tip-off about the Vaults space at Goods Yard - apparently someone has taken that on, or is very late on in taking it on. That’ll be good and interesting news.
There are loads more stories and I know that Helen and the team would love to write them all.
It’s funny, taking a back seat, not driving it along. I can see how early this all still is. You don’t build a new news outlet overnight and from my vantage point now, I still see how much support we need to keep adding fuel to the fire. Every read matters, every share matters, every paid subscriber makes a huge difference.
If you’re an avid reader of The Knot, please consider upgrading to paid. You’ll support our journalism and you’ll get access to all of our feature journalism.
It really is a great read and if you care about Stoke and North Staffordshire, you won’t be getting this news anywhere else. That’s worth backing.
I’m a proud subscriber, regular reader and proud founder!
Cheers,
James x