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Raising awareness of the ketogenic diet for children with epilepsy has earned Daily Telegraph’s senior feature writer Cassandra Jardine the Epilepsy Scotland Journalist of the Year Award.  She collects her £500 prize and trophy tonight from award judge and former Talk 107 Programme Director Mike Graham before 250 corporate guests attending the charity’s Edinburgh Wags dinner.  Tommy Sheridan, Gordon Smith and Joyce Falconer are among the guest speakers at the gala event hosted by Radio Forth DJ Grant Stott in the Roxburghe Hotel.

Cassandra Jardine’s health feature ‘A diet to ease the trauma of epilepsy’ highlighted this unusual culinary treatment which can help children with difficult seizures.  Sara and David Garland created a charity in memory of their daughter Daisy who benefited from this high fat regime but sadly later died from epilepsy.  This human interest story told with technical skill found favour with award judges novelist Kate Atkinson, BBC broadcaster Jackie Bird, Radio 1 DJ Edith Bowman, Talk 107 Programme Director Mike Graham, and Scottish NUJ representative, Paul Holleran.  

Award runner-up Emma Burstall gave a moving account of living with epilepsy in her ‘Woman and Home’ feature ‘I dread losing control but people’s reactions are often harder to bear’.

Taken aback at winning the award, Cassandra Jardine said: "I’m thrilled to have won the award, especially for an article that will, I hope, give parents the feeling that there is something they can do for a child with epilepsy. It must be agony merely watching helplessly when a child is having constant seizures. It certainly was for Daisy Garland’s parents who have devoted so much time and effort since their daughter’s death to helping others, by fund-raising to make specialist dieticians available."

The judging was really close.  The panel had to choose from 20 high standard entries.  Edith Bowman said, “I loved the story.  Sara went against protocol and tried to help her daughter in other ways rather than just giving her pills.  I liked how it told me something new and hopeful that could be made more readily available.”  Jackie Bird remarked, “If I knew someone whose child had epilepsy I would cut out this article and keep it.” 

Previous high-profile judges include broadcasters Lorraine Kelly and Sheena McDonald, film maker Richard Jobson and authors Ian Rankin, Denise Mina, William McIlvanney, Alasdair Gray and Christopher Brookmyre.

Other short-listed Award entrants included: Elaine Bowers (Greenock Telegraph), Fiona Duffy (Scottish Daily Mirror), Rosalind Gibb (Edinburgh Evening News), Nan Spowart (Herald),and Tristan Stewart-Robertson (The Scotsman)

ENDS

Notes to Editor

Photo opportunity and interviews:

A photo opportunity with Epilepsy Scotland's Journalist of the Year Award winner, Cassandra Jardine and former Talk 107 Programme Director Mike Graham.  It takes place on 13 March at 7.30pm in the banqueting suite at the Roxburghe Hotel, Edinburgh.

Epilepsy Scotland works with people affected by epilepsy to ensure their voice is heard.  We campaign for improved healthcare, better information provision and an end to stigma.  We represent the one in 130 people who have this common neurological condition – that’s nearly 40,000 Scots - as well as their families and carers.  Our freephone Helpline 0808 800 2200 and website www.epilepsyscotland.org.uk provide information on epilepsy matters

The award was sponsored by Alex Hammond-Chambers & Co and HPFM.  Last year, Scottish Water sponsored the award.

The World Health Organisation promotes the epilepsy awareness-raising Out of the Shadows campaign.  Previous Journalist of the Year award winners include Tristan Stewart-Robertson (Inverclyde Extra, 2007), Julia Horton (Edinburgh Evening News, 2006) and Karen Gold (The Times, 2005).

This is Epilepsy Scotland’s ninth Journalist of the Year Award which is endorsed by the Scottish National Union of Journalists.