LIZ Page, the editor of the Evening Press, has been appointed Publisher of the York & County Press.

She will take up the role from May 1, assuming the running of the company which prints the Evening Press.

She has been editor of the newspaper since January 1996, in which time the Evening Press has won many awards, including Newsquest Daily Paper of the Year 2000 - 2001 for its coverage of the disastrous floods of the millennium year.

She said: "It has been a pleasure and a privilege to edit the Evening Press for the last seven years. Fires and floods, triumphs and disasters - and the dawn of a new millennium - have all been chronicled in that time.

"But our role as community champions will always stand out in my memory, including campaigns to Save Our Swim, Free Ian Stillman, build a Cancer Care Centre and the £2 million hospice appeal."

Liz is a member of the board of the Society of Editors, and was the society's first woman President in 2001-2002.

She is a member of the Without Walls project to develop a vision for York for the next 20 years, and lives in the city with her journalist husband, Brian, and two teenage children.

The Evening Press will appoint a new editor in due course.

Liz said: "Whoever takes over will inherit a top editorial team and I wish them all every success.

"I am delighted to be staying in York and look forward to working with colleagues and contacts to develop our products in the years ahead."

Updated: 10:29 Wednesday, March 26, 2003