Revealed - press barons of the future

LEEDS emerged victorious last night in the first National Student Journalism Awards, organised by the Independent and the National Union of Students. The Leeds Student newspaper, run by students at Leeds University and Leeds Metropolitan University, clinched the best newspaper award. The runner-up was Cherwell from Oxford.

Sussex won the best magazine category for its publication Pulse, while students from St Andrews were victorious in the small-budget award with the Saint. St Andrews was a double winner, with the Saint's John Hopkins winning the best reporter category for his hard-hitting interview with a woman who was raped during a foreign exchange.

Tim Nash from Gair Rhydd (Cardiff University) won the best campaign award for the paper's fight for changes to the summer exam timetable.

The awards were presented last night by the writer and broadcaster David Aaronovitch at a ceremony for student editors and writers in London's West End. The awards attracted an unprecedented response, with more than 500 entries. Shortlists, revealed last month, included nearly 30 publications in 11 categories covering all aspects of student journalism.

Andrew Pakes, the NUS president, said: "I'm delighted. The awards have been a great celebration of the diversity of student media outlets out there, from the small papers, which are innovative, to the larger, more established publications, which have the quality as well as the style."

There are now more than 250 college newspapers and magazines around the country, with a combined circulation running into hundreds of thousands.

Thousands of students turn their hand to writing, photography and production - making journalism second only to sport in popularity on campus.

The distinguished panel of experts included Simon Kelner, editor of the Independent, Peter Wilby, editor of the New Statesman, David Aaronovitch, a former NUS president, and Andrew Pakes.

The results are:

Best student newspaper: Leeds Student. (Leeds and Leeds Metropolitan Universities); runner-up: Cherwell (Oxford).

Best student magazine: the Pulse (Sussex); runner-up: the Word (Oxford).

Best small-budget publication: the Saint (St Andrews); runner-up: the Pulse (Sussex).

Best student website: Sheffield Electronic Press (Sheffield University).

Best student reporter: John Hopkins (the Saint, St Andrews); runner-up: Anja Beachmann (Scratch, South Bank University).

Best student campaign: Tim Nash (Gair Rhydd, Cardiff University); runner- up: James Jordan (the Courier, Newcastle University).

Best student photographer: Ed Alcock (Queen Mary and Westfield College); runner-up: David Cross (Manchester Metropolitan University).

Best student feature writer: Tim Dewhurst (Westworld, University of the West of England); runner-up: James McCarthy (Leeds Student, Leeds and Leeds Metropolitan Universities).

Best student sports journalist: Daniel Rookwood (Varsity, Cambridge University); runner-up: Roy Delaney (Westworld, University of the West of England).

Best student arts journalist: Jonathan Stubbs (Warwick Boar, Warwick University); runner-up: Tim Robey (Cherwell, Oxford University).

Best student designer: Joanna Roach (Scratch, South Bank University); runner-up: Simon Griffin and Dean Langley (Shout, Liverpool John Moores University).