About Us

The Blyth Valley Community Radio Response Group (BVCRRG) The Blyth Valley Community Radio Response Group (BVCRRG) The BVCRRG will consider any ideas, comments or suggestions put forward to do with programming and scheduling. They will not respond to comments about any individual member of Blyth Valley Community Radio as this is beyond their function. If you wish to contact the group, please write (we are unable to accept any other form of communication) to: The Communications Director Blyth Valley Community Radio The Bunker, Saint Felix School, Halesworth Road, Reydon, Southwold, Suffolk, IP18 6SD Mark the envelope “For attention of BVCRRG” ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Please let us know what you would you like to hear on your Community Radio Station We offer a variety of programmes throughout the week (see our programme schedules) including popular music from the 50’s through to the present day. We have more specialised music programmes such as Classical, Jazz, Country and Western, and 40’s and 50’s Swing music. We also offer several magazine programmes containing interviews and discussions about topics of local and national interest. If you would like to hear any topic or music genre not covered by our regular programmes, please get in touch with us. If you are willing to present a specialised programme, even better. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Your Feedback We are continuously seeking feedback from our listening audience on all manner of circumstances here at Blyth Valley Radio. If you wish to put your point of view, comment, praise, criticism, complaints, etc., on any matter to do with the station you can contact us in the following ways and we promise to look into your views and report back to you with how we intend to deal with them as necessary. 1) Contact Blyth Valley Community Radio  (address, telephone & email on home page) 2) Contact Ofcom the licensing authority at   www.ofcom.org.uk and follow the necessary links. _____________________________________________________________________________________ ANNUAL REPORT Blyth Valley Community Radio, like all Community radio licensees, is required to complete an annual report on our key commitments as set out in our licence. The first section is our 2013 Key Commitments Report to Ofcom. Below this is the 2013 report of the Blyth Valley Community Radio Response Group (BVCRRG) The station’s achievements in 2013 in numbers: Average number of live hours per week   72 Hours Average number of original programming hours per week (this may include pre-recorded and live material but should not include repeats). 73 Hours  The percentage of your live daytime output that is speech  30.8%  Number of people trained during the year 12 People Number of volunteers involved during the year  56 Volunteers Total volunteer hours per week 183 hours  If appropriate, a list of languages you have broadcast in  English Only  Please indicate whether your station key commitments have been delivered during the reporting period:  January 2013 to December 2013 Key commitments: Programming Blyth Valley Radio will have a specific geographical focus with a mix of non-chart music and speech to suit the population of its coverage area. In addition, the station will offer a range of specialist programmes to provide an alternative listening experience. Yes    Live output will typically consist of 75% music and 25% speech (‘speech’ excludes advertising, programme/promotional trails and sponsor credits). Yes    Music output will mainly feature music from the last six decades, with a broad range of genres played to suit all tastes. The station will also broadcast specific specialist music programmes. Yes    Speech output will have a focus on local events, issues and concerns of people in the area. The speech content will comprise local news, what’s on items, studio discussions, interviews, children’s programmes and other local topical programmes. Yes    Output will be broadcast in English. Other community languages may feature from time to time as the station develops, depending on community demand and the availability of volunteers. Yes    The service will typically be live for at least 6 hours per day with the intention of increasing the number of hours as the station develops. (Live programming may include pre-recorded inserts, if applicable). The majority of the output will be locally produced. Yes Key commitments: Social gain objectives (a) The provision of sound broadcasting services to individuals who are otherwise underserved    Blyth Valley Radio will offer a local radio service to provide people with regular and substantial information about what is happening in their local area. The station will also target particular groups with its service, including the elderly, the unemployed, those with disabilities, children and young people. Yes (b) The facilitation of discussion and the expression of opinion   Blyth Valley Radio will encourage community involvement in its programming and operation, and proactively seek opinions on issues of local concern. The station will use a variety of methods such as on-air discussions, interviews, and emails to gather information and to find out topics of interest and affecting the community. Yes (c) The provision (whether by means of programmes included in the service or otherwise) of education or training to individuals not employed by the person providing the service  Blyth Valley Radio will offer facilities for training in all aspects of radio broadcasting for members of the community, including young people from schools within the coverage area. Yes The station will offer in-house training for at least 30 volunteers each year in community radio broadcasting, featuring various aspects such as presentation skills, news gathering and recording, and conducting outside broadcasts. Yes    The station will provide training in ICT and technical skills for at least 10 people each year. There will also be learning opportunities for at least 10 volunteers a year in administrative and office skills. Yes (d) The better understanding of the particular community and the strengthening of the links within it  The station will seek to integrate with the community through a variety of different means, including liaising with local clubs and organisations to engage with different groups and to help promote their activities. Yes The station will attend different events in the area and will provide public address facilities and live links where appropriate. Yes Additional Social Gain objectives (if any are specified in your licence). The station will develop links with local authorities and facilitate the promotion of their services as well as publicising job and work experience opportunities. The station will also look to connect with local voluntary bodies. Yes The station will use outside broadcast work and the provision of public address facilities at local events to benefit the community in a broader context. Yes Explanatory notes re non-delivery: 22 new volunteer presenter and school / work experience students were provided with broadcasting training. Longer serving volunteers did not require further training this year. Key commitments: Access and participation The station will operate an ‘Open door’ policy wherever possible to allow access to its facilities and to the service. Yes Membership of the Blyth Valley Community Radio Association will be open to anyone living, working or undertaking education in the coverage area. Members will be able to participate as volunteers at the station, with opportunities arising in all aspects of the station’s work. Yes Volunteers will be invited to attend the station’s regular meetings where the management will listen to feedback and ideas on how to run the station and what to include on it. Yes Key commitments: Accountability to the target community Blyth Valley Community Radio Response Group (BVCRRG) will consist of 12 elected members with a quorum of not less than six members. The group will advise on station strategy, programme content and provide arbitration. Yes BVCRRG will hold an annual open meeting for members of the community to make comments about the station and review its progress and activities. Comments and criticisms will be welcomed and acted upon  Yes The station will establish a Monitoring Panel of around 20 people from different groups within the broadcast area. The panel will meet at least four times a year to discuss the service and will meet with the station to consider the ideas and suggestions raised and how to implement any beneficial changes.  Yes The station will also develop its website with a comment area for people to contact the station and give their views. Yes The station will have a published complaints procedure and will also have a code of conduct for members and volunteers involved at the station. Yes   Volunteer inputs Approximate number of hours worked on average per volunteer per week:   3 hours per volunteer per week  This ranges from one volunteer who works approximately 30 minutes per week to others who do more than 10 hours per week. There are 5 volunteers who work in excess of twenty five hours per week. Additional Information: We have volunteers whose ages range from 13 years to 93 years. Most volunteers are presenters who broadcast their own style of programmes and gather their own news and weather reports, traffic and travel, etc. We have a few volunteers who compile the events diary, gather news and weather, etc. and work generally behind the scenes on fund raising and promotion ideas, etc. 4 volunteers are registered disabled. 4 volunteers (all presenters) are under 18. Regular active volunteers include: 6 Company Directors. Of these, 5 are also Station Managers and/or regular on-air presenters. 1 treasurer. 2 other non-presenting volunteers 40 regular active weekly on-air presenters averaged over the year of which 27 are male and 13 female.    Significant achievements The local Town, Parish, District and County Councils have continued to make good use of the service we can offer them. The Town and Parish Councils continue to use the station to relay official announcements to the people of the area. Our Casino studio is also one of the centres holding an Emergency Response kit. One significant achievement was last December during a Tidal Surge which hit the area in which we broadcast. This was overnight during 6th and 7th December 2013. The area was hit with many flooded homes and businesses and we stayed on air right through till 1am in the morning, when the worst was over, giving out continuous updates as the situation unfolded. We had volunteers out and about monitoring the situation and ringing back with information. The listener feedback we had from this was exceptional with praise for what we did and how we did it. Made it very worthwhile to us. Another significant achievement is that we provided the Public Address system and operated it during the evening of the Switch - On of the Southwold Christmas Lights in December. ( Southwold is our local town ). We kept the large crowd entertained between various events going on and did the actual countdown to the Switch - On itself. We continue to be part of the local Community Emergency Group which keeps residents informed of any kind of emergency that may occur, particularly flooding etc. There are many update meetings which we attend and we are a first line of response to any occurring emergency.  Another significant achievement during the year was that we believe we have the oldest radio presenter of any station in the country at 93 years of age. The local  television news company ( Anglia TV ) came along and did some filming and reporting whilst she was on air. It was broadcast during their news bulletin the same evening. A great deal of publicity for us.  Local schools have continued to use our facilities for the children to be able to broadcast their written work and music via the radio. We have also provided work experience places for them. The Christmas Message scheme was again repeated this year helping to raise valuable funds and enable local, and some more remote businesses to send year-end messages to existing, and potentially new customers.  Organisations, charities and clubs on fringe areas, as well as several outside of our broadcast area, have continued to come forward asking us to promote their events as our name spreads further afield.  Audience research We have continued to use verbal audience research (stop and ask) over the past year on a regular basis specifically at public functions such as local fetes and the Christmas Lights switch-on that we have attended. We are always asking for comments and suggestions both on air and via the members of the Blyth Valley Community Radio Response Group (BVCRRG) who have provided valuable feedback. We have on occasions carried out special promotions, etc., for local businesses and ourselves and monitored the response these promotions achieve Blyth Valley Community Radio Response Group (BVCRRG) 2013 Annual Report The B.V.C.R.R.G. consists of twelve elected members of the Local community. . Members of the BVCRRG, are  in attendance at local events and mingle with the visitors asking various questions about the radio, such as have you heard of us? Do you listen to us? What programmes do you listen to? What would you like us to do programme wise and what do you like best and least from what you hear?   The BVCRRG also send representatives into the local high street twice a year, stopping and asking people of all ages for their opinions and feedback.