The Chelsea Citizen is nominated for major media award – NO SHOCK!

The Chelsea Citizen has been nominated for a prestigious award in Press Gazette’s highly credible Future of Media Awards.

The Citizen – a humble, self-funded news operation – has been given the nod by judges for Website of the Year (Regional/Local) and is up against some of the best-resourced and biggest hitters in the regional press.

Shortlisted in the category are Kent Online, Birmingham Live, So Glos, Belfast Telegraph and the Andover Advertiser – all of which are owned by long-established and large media groups, such as Reach and Mediaquest. The winner will be announced at a modestly glittering night at the London Hilton Bankside on 10th September.

The Chelsea Citizen was founded and funded by freelance journalist Rob McGibbon and launched in February 2025 – despite a failed crowdfunding campaign. The news title covers Chelsea, as well as its border neighbourhoods in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, and has become known for breaking headline stories.

Many Citizen exclusives have been followed by the national press, including The Sunday Times, Daily Mail, Daily Telegraph, The Sun and Private Eye. It was this ability to consistently break news that was highlighted in the awards judges’ citation. It was also commended for turning “an arid news desert” into an “oasis of news and stories”.

The judges were also impressed by The Citizen’s determined campaigning, not least for leading a two year battle against Rockwell Property building a tower of luxury flats by Battersea Bridge – a campaign that culminated with a famous victory in June.

Editor Rob McGibbon, who started out as a local reporter on the Wimbledon News in 1985, said: “I am delighted that The Citizen has been acknowledged with this nomination. We have been punching way above our weight since Day One and we have proved that, with the right level of determination and a decent news sense, you can find news stories in an area that really matter to the community.

“This entire project has been the most arduous and exhausting vertical ascent of my career, but it has also been the most fulfilling. Going back to my roots as a local reporter and seeing how important local news is to my community has reaffirmed my absolute belief in the vital necessity for local newspapers. I hope that The Citizen can become a template for how hyper local news should be done – and how it can thrive.”