Five years ago this week, East Anglia Bylines set out to report the stories that mattered to our region. Along the way, we’ve also discovered even more about what makes East Anglia such a remarkable place. From the challenges facing farmers to the richness of our wildlife, from local artists and musicians to the history beneath our feet, these stories have celebrated the landscapes, communities and heritage that shape the place we call home. Here, members of our editorial team reflect on some of the themes that have defined our coverage and why they continue to matter.
Farming
Kate Moore
You are what you eat. And with the increasing recognition that ultra processed foods are harmful to health, so the importance of farming grows. And with it, our understanding of the work of farmers.
East Anglia Bylines has worked with, and supported, farmers across the region. Our articles have covered many topics including the challenges faced by tenant farmers, the issue of inheritance tax and agrivoltaics.
Sadly, this has also meant raising awareness of how dangerous farming can be. It remains the UK’s deadliest profession. Gone are the days when fields were full of farm workers. Today farming can be a very solitary and often lonely occupation. With that comes fatigue and pressure against time and the weather, such that cases of injury, death and mental illness are all too prevalent.
Animal welfare remains an issue. Whether it be the lack of trained butchers and local abattoirs or the rise of mega farms to meet our demand for cheap food. Many small farms put animal welfare foremost as well as their role as custodians of the countryside creating and preserving habitat for wildlife. And this is in spite of changing political policy.
In his open letter to Steve Reed, then Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Suffolk farmer Graham Denny set out the challenges for wildlife conservation. Cambridge farmer Martin Lines, CEO of Nature Friendly Farming Network, has also used East Anglia Bylines to share his message that food security and nature-friendly farming go hand in hand. Looking to the future, East Anglia Bylines will remain a voice for farming.
Environment and nature
Jenny Rhodes & Kate Moore
Reporting on the environment and nature is a passion for our journalists because they’re issues that matter deeply to our readers. Also East Anglia has amazing natural features like chalk streams, saltmarshes and rivers.
Climate emergency
With climate change’s negative effect on wildlife and humans, East Anglia Bylines highlighted the importance of correctly managing hedgerows to promote habitats, as well as how we must cherish trees as nature’s air cooling system and promote healthier ecosystems.
One surprise was discovering that East Anglia has far less tree cover than Greater London. Coastal erosion, air quality and flooding did not escape our notice, either.
Wildlife
We learnt how insects, especially bees and wasps, are fundamental to improving our ecology, but struggling to survive. From the cattle creating habitats for other species, to beavers cleansing water, to bats providing insights into environmental health, to the Monks Wood rewilding experiment. We witnessed the comeback of endangered animals like the water vole.
EAB reported on how individuals are making garden pockets of paradise, how councils and cities like Cambridge are creating habitats for nature and how technology will help nature going forward.
Particularly well-read are articles on changing bird populations, like the appearance of parakeets. Whereas some birds (peregrines, cranes, bitterns, spoonbills) are making a comeback, others are declining (songbirds, swifts and garden birds).
Issues and campaigns
We wrote of developments affecting our region’s environment and on local reactions, for example, the pylons scheme. The ongoing problem of sewage in our waters and residents’ campaigns against it are never far from our pages.
Some protests we reported were successful, like at Colchester’s Middlewick Ranges. Others were not, as with the felling in Rochford of a much-loved tree despite lengthy protests.
The stories show how much East Anglians care about their environment, some even training as citizen scientists to fight river pollution. We even have an 11 year-old writer who advises us on simple ways to save wildlife.
Ultimately though, it’s politicians who influence action on the climate emergency, like the county council which decided to cancel ‘net zero policies’, and how Brexit affects our environment. This shows the importance of awareness of parties’ intentions before voting for them.
We will continue to report on the natural world and welcome your suggestions about issues to cover. We know some will be worrying, but there is good news out there too.
Culture
Sarah Patey
We were barely a month old when we set the tone with an article on quirky water towers, and we found more quirkiness with steampunk in Great Yarmouth. The terrifying Black Shuck, mythical Norfolk/Suffolk wild dog, has roamed our pages, and to celebrate International Cat Day we wrote about the contribution of real cats to the life of astronauts.
Ipswich MP Jack Abbott is keen that the town should become City of Culture 2029 – so how wonderful that global star Ed Sheeran is a local lad. Musical life in the region is rich and varied. We’ve published stories about young East Anglian musicians in both local and international groups, and in 2023 we spotted a rising star, Cambridge organist Anna Lapwood.
We recently celebrated a significant anniversary for the artist John Constable, and we shone a light on a pre-Raphaelite jewel in deepest Hertfordshire. Artists continue to flourish in the region: Gennadiy Ivanov has painted both his home city, Norwich, and its twin city Rouen. And recently, Snape was the perfect setting for a striking exhibition expressing Britten’s music in paint.
In Cromer too, life is enriched by twinnings in France, Germany and Italy. Our roots in European culture go deep.
History
Sarah Patey
We’ve explored the region’s history from Iron Age war and the Romans, to Norwich’s Norman castle and cathedral, via Sutton Hoo, a major Anglo-Saxon site in Suffolk that continues to yield its secrets and its mysteries. Much is still hiding underground! We love to promote the historical and cultural wealth of local museums.
The sea, for centuries the main highway, has enriched the life of our region, and we have both defended and celebrated the rivers that have brought both people and trade inland. Yet we remain vigilant: our coasts and rivers have not always been our friends.
In more recent centuries, outstanding women have graced our region, in Essex, Suffolk and Norfolk. We revisited bygone rural life in Akenfield and learned how to make a Victorian curry at Audley End.
East Anglia was of course crucial to the Second World War effort both in the air and at sea – where nasty surprises still lurk.
And in December 2023, we had our own correspondent on board for a dramatic emergency on a Northern Lights cruise. Like some other stories, this was picked up by the national press. They were less interested, sadly, in the royal roots of another member of our team.
Looking ahead
East Anglia’s landscapes, history and communities have always been shaped by change. Over the past five years we’ve celebrated what makes our region unique, but we’ve also reported on the challenges it faces – from pressures on farming and wildlife to protecting our heritage for future generations. As our region continues to evolve, we’ll continue telling the stories that help us understand the place we call home. The story of East Anglia is still being written. In the second part of our anniversary reflections, we explore the wider forces that have shaped both our region and our lives.
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