The Chester Chronicle beat off stiff competition to win the prestigious New Media title at last night's O2 Media Awards - the Oscars of regional journalism.

On a night which largely celebrated traditional media such as newspapers, television and radio, this was the only award which specifically highlighted the increasing dominance of digital media.

The Chester Chronicle was up against Mike Price of the Liverpool Echo, Cumbria Live and Ben Turner of the Liverpool Echo.

But it was The Chronicle's digital and communities editor Jo Henwood who had the honour of being presented with the award during a triumphant night for parent company Trinity Mirror.

She said: "We are a small team here at The Chronicle but everyone has embraced digital and social media wholeheartedly.

"Part of our entry for this award highlighted coverage of the floods last winter which resulted in hundreds of thousands of hits on our website. This was due to the efforts not only of our own staff but also the relationship we have built up with the people of Chester who provided us with so many stunning photographs of flooding in their area."

The event took place at the Imperial War Museum North at Salford Quays in Manchester and was hosted by BBC Breakfast presenter and Chester resident Louise Minchin and Dave Massey, O2’s head of communications strategy and reputation.

The Chester Chronicle was highly commended in the category of Weekly Newspaper of the Year while Carmella De Lucia and Rachel Flint were also highly commended in the Weekly News Reporter of the Year award. Sam Yarwood of our sister paper The Flintshire Chronicle was also highly commended in the Young Journalist of the Year section.

Chronicle editor Michael Green said: "This award success is a real coup for The Chester Chronicle and is a fitting tribute to the way our talented team has responded so creatively and enthusiastically to the exciting challenges presented by the extraordinary developments in media which have revolutionised the way we present news and information to our community on a daily basis."

It was also a great night for The Chronicle's sister title The Liverpool Echo which won Daily Newspaper of the Year, Scoop of the Year, Supplement of the Year and Photographer of the Year for Gareth Jones.

The evening ended with a standing ovation for Lyn and Ian Rigby, the mother and stepfather of Lee Rigby, the 25-year-old British soldier from Greater Manchester who was brutally murdered in London in May 2013.

Other special guests included veterans of the Second World War, who received a fanfare from the Duke of Lancaster’s Regimental Band as they took to the stage.