Tindle Newspapers closes last remaining View From newspaper title

Report by Charlotte Tobitt for Press Gazette

Tindle Newspapers has closed the last remaining View From newspaper title, the monthly View From The Blackdown Hills.

The 16-page free paper was bought by Tindle in December 2009 as the publisher sought to widen its circulation area in the south west of England.

Its last edition, which had a distribution of around 6,000, was published this month.

Sandra Perraton, managing director of Tindle Newspapers in Teignbridge, Tavistock and Mid and East Devon, said: “Tindle Newspapers have been proud to serve the people of the Somerset/ Devon border.”

Perraton added that no journalists were made redundant by the closure, and that there are no current plans for any other newspapers from her centres in the south west to close.

Sandra Perraton - Tindle Newspapers Ltd.

At the time of Tindle’s purchase of the title from View From Publishing, former chairman Sir Ray Tindle said it was an “excellent editorial and advertising publication and we are proud to have it in our family”, adding: “There is a big future for these community newspapers.”

The Blackdown Hills newspaper was the last surviving View From title after the series was closed on 4 January due to “falling revenues” . It was the only title still owned by Tindle.

The other View From editions were owned by Capital Media Newspapers until it went into administration in July 2017 and then bought by Sunday Independent owner Peter Masters.

After Masters closed the newspaper series, the brand was sold for £1 to Duncan Williams, a director of West Country media company Pulman’s Weekly News Group.

Williams has now been found personally liable at a tribunal for thousands of pounds owed to former employees.

Tribunal rules job loss workers are entitled to £250k

Reported by Hamish Marshall for BBC Spotlight

Hamish Marshall 

Two dozen workers in Devon and Dorset have won their case to get an estimated £250,000 they're owed - nine months after losing their jobs.

"The View From" series of newspapers, which included Axminster, Lyme Regis and Weymouth, was closed and then sold by Cornish businessman Peter Masters in January.

An employment tribunal has ruled new owner Duncan Williams is now responsible for the staff wages, notice and redundancy payments.

A hearing will be held next year to decide how much each worker - including journalists and sales executives - is entitled to.

The government will foot the bill if Mr Williams declares himself bankrupt.

He has told the BBC he intends to appeal the decision.