EDWIN BOORMAN, the president of the Kent Messenger Group, has received a rare honour from the Newspaper Society, the organisation which represents Britain's 1,300 regional and local papers.

Mr Boorman, who was president of the Newspaper Society in 2001, became only the10th person to receive the President's Prize, which is awarded to those people judged to have given exceptional service to the industry.

The Society's current president, Sir Nicholas Hewitt, said of Mr Boorman: "His contribution to the newspaper industry and his involvement in his local community have both been outstanding."

Mr Boorman, a Deputy Lieutenant of Kent, retired as chairman of the KM Group at the end of last year after celebrating 47 years with the company. His father, Henry Roy, was president of the society in 1960.