Connor has two winners in communications competition

Friday May 12th 2023

Connor had two winners in the 2023 Church of Ireland Central Communications Board’s communications competition, with the diocesan magazine and Maghergall Parish both receiving plaudits.

Connor Connections, published three times a year and distributed free to all parishes, was the winner in the diocesan magazine category.

The competition judge stated that the winning entry ‘packs tremendous quality into its 24 pages, giving a diocesan–wide audience to some powerful stories which deserve to be heard beyond parishes.’ The judge added that the magazine ‘conveys a sense of a Church at work for the common good in the diocese and beyond.’

Magheragall Parish News was highly commended.

Magheragall Parish News was highly commended in the parish magazine category for the quality of the publication.

The winners were announced on the first day of the Church of Ireland General Synod, taking place in Clayton White’s Hotel, Wexford.

This year’s competition focused on print media in the Church of Ireland and celebrated the work of writers, designers and editors whose consistent and creative work produces our magazines throughout the year.

Bishop George Davison accepts the prizes for Connor Connections and Magheragall Parish News from Scott Hayes from sponsors Ecclesiastical Insurance.

Full results are:

In the parishes category, first place went to Union Focus – the magazine for Naas Union of Parishes in the Diocese of Meath and Kildare. The competition judge commended this ‘properly hefty publication with a broad range of content that goes well beyond the ‘what’s on’ and ‘who’s who’ material that should be the essence of a parish magazine.” Plenty of photographs accompanied a well–chosen mix of short and long articles.’

The comments continued: “It’s clear that Union Focus is put together by a team who take great pride in the magazine and who appreciate the continuing importance of the printed word at a time when it is complemented by digital platforms.”

The runner–up, The Messenger from Magheralin Parish, in the Diocese of Down and Dromore, described as ‘a vibrant, colourful magazine with strong design’ with a discipline of its typefaces and page layouts from which others could learn. The magazine conveyed ‘a strong sense of a church that’s active in and reaching out to its community.’

The following magazines were highly commended for their quality:

The Pointer, Clonallon and Warrenpoint with Kilbroney (Down and Dromore)
St Patrick’s Press, Greystones (Dublin and Glendalough)
The Columban, Knock (Down and Dromore)
Magheragall Parish News (Connor)

Runner-up to Connor Connections in the diocesan category was n:vision, from the Diocese of Derry and Raphoe, which combines the traditional round–up of news from parishes in the diocese as well as interesting general stories: “A strong design and layout give n:vision a quality sheen. The children’s pages are vibrant and the drawings for the ‘cover competition’ give the magazine a sense of energy,” the judge commented.

A further category welcomed entries from organisations affiliated with the Church of Ireland. In first place was InMission from the CMS Ireland missionary agency – a ‘professionally produced magazine gives a good overview of the mission agency’s work and campaigns here and overseas.’

Focus, the Mothers’ Union All Ireland magazine, was the runner–up. This magazine, the judge concluded, is ‘clearly put together on a small budget but more than makes up for it in heart and the dedication of its members to serve Christ.’ The Ukrainian Teddy Bear project and the campaign to raise awareness of violence against women ‘show how this organisation remains endlessly relevant.’

The competition was kindly sponsored by Ecclesiastical Insurance and prizes were presented by the Chair of the Central Communications Board, Bishop Pat Storey.