Tag Archives: funding

PACA wins £130,000 funding award for Page Hall youth project

The Pakistan Advice and Community Association (PACA), based in Page Hall has been awarded £130,000 from the BBC Children in Need fund. The three year funding award will be used to organise activities for communities in the area, engage local youth and to promote integration through English language improvement. PACA provides advice and information services on welfare rights, immigration, debt, employment, consumer rights and housing. The group also offer translation and interpretation services. Sheffield Live! reporter Baillor Jalloh spoke to Ali Hamed, youth worker at PACA.

Eclipse Theatre wins major funding award

Sheffield-based Eclipse Theatre have been awarded a grant of £125,000 by Arts Council England. The company, formed in 2010, aim to be at the forefront of delivering stories from the Black British experience in regional theatres. The grant funding, part of the Catalyst: Evolve programme, is intended to support development of the company. Sheffield Live! reporter Azz Mohammed spoke to Founder and Artistic Director, Dawn Walton.

Our Big Gig – funding available to organise music events

Our Big Gig, a community music celebration which will take place across the UK from the 11 – 13 July 2014, has grants and support available for event organisers who wish to programme community events.

Funded by the Department for Communities and Local Government, Our Big Gig will “see the country once again come together to celebrate local music at community events, showcase new and existing talent and give people the opportunity to have a go at making music.”

For 2014, all types of community organisations are being urged to apply to put on an event in their local area and bring together diverse groups of people through music. All successful applicants receive grant funding and event management training is provided.

Organised by music and arts organisation Superact, this annual event – which was formerly known as the Bandstand Marathon – “brings communities together to improve community cohesion and inspire more people to take part in music making opportunities in their local area.”

Superact is looking for 150 event organisers to run events across England. All successful applicants are given a £400 grant, support from Superact’s Project Managers and event management training.

Application details and criteria:

  • Applicants can apply to put on a new community event or an established event scheduled for a date between the 11th and 13th July
  • Superact can only provide funding to community organisations with a bank account
  • All events need to: be at least four hours long; be free to attend; present opportunities for people to participate in a range of musical activities.The deadline for applications is 12 noon on 4th April 2014
  • Read more at: http://www.superact.org.uk/ourbiggig/our-big-gig-2014

Minister pledges to find new funds for community radio

Support Community Radio! Sign the Petition! Click Here!The Government is to seek additional funds to support community radio, according to Siôn Simon MP, Minister for Creative Industries. The Minister’s comments come in response to a joint letter to the Prime Minister signed by community broadcasters in Sheffield and across the country, calling for a sizeable increase in public funding for community radio.

In the Government reply to the joint open letter, Siôn Simon writes: “the Government recognises the importance of community radio and its contribution to the communities which they serve”. In addition to current Government support, he says: “DCMS will continue to work with other Government Departments and Agencies to identify other sources of funding, specifically where there are community cohesion and social gain objectives, for community radio.”

Steve Buckley, Director of community radio station, Sheffield Live!, said: “We welcome Government recognition that additional funding should be found for community radio but we need more than a vague expression of intent.  We are not asking for the sector to be fully, or even majority, publicly funded. All we want is for Government support to be reflected in a funding settlement that reflects the benefits community radio brings to the communities we serve. Government should implement now the recommendations of the Everitt Report.”

Professor Anthony Everitt, author of the 2003 report, New Voices, whose recommendations formed the basis for government legislation, says the sector is “hobbled by its poverty”, and has called on government to implement the recommendations of his report to provide (matched) grant aid of £30,000 per year per station towards core operating costs. Everitt says “this is a modest expenditure when the benefits community radio can confer are taken into account”.

The community radio campaign has gained the support of members of Parliament from all political parties. Lord David Puttnam assured the community radio sector:  “…the weight of public support and technological history are with you.” A petition, at http://allthevoices.org, calling on the Government to support the sustainability and growth of community radio by substantially increasing the resources of the Community Radio Fund, has gathered nearly 3000 signatures.

For further information including a copy of the letter from the Minister follow this link

Lord Puttnam backs broadcasters’ campaign

Support Community Radio! Sign the Petition! Click Here!Lord David Puttnam has pledged his “.. absolute support..” to a campaign by community radio stations in Sheffield and across the country who are pressing the government for access to adequate and reliable funds.

Community radio, acclaimed by industry regulator Ofcom as a “broadcasting success story”, is under constant fear of closure, according to Professor Anthony Everitt, author of the 2003 report, New Voices, whose recommendations formed the basis for government legislation.

The Community Radio Order 2004 is currently under review as are the funding arrangements for public service broadcasting content outside the BBC. Funding for community radio has not kept pace with growth in the number of services. The Community Radio Fund was set up in 2005, with £500,000 per annum when there were only 14 community radio licensees. Today there are around 150 community radio services on air, while the Fund has not grown in size.

Everitt, in a letter to the Department for Culture Media and Sport, says the sector is “hobbled by its poverty”, and has called on government to implement the recommendations of his report to provide (matched) grant aid of £30,000 per year per station towards core operating costs. Everitt says “this is a modest expenditure when the benefits community radio can confer are taken into account”, and it is needed “to place community radio on a sound financial footing”.

Community broadcasters have called on government, in an open letter to the Prime Minister, to implement the funding recommendations of the Everitt report to ensure the sustainability and development of community radio. And a petition to the Prime Minister, calling for increased funding for the sector, is also gathering momentum with over 1700 signatures already confirmed.

Lord David Puttnam assured the community radio sector:  “…the weight of public support and technological history are with you…”

Sangita Basudev, Chief Executive of Sheffield Live! 93.2 FM welcomed Lord Puttnam’s support and said: “Community radio stations around the country have demonstrated their effectiveness in giving voice to and involving local people from diverse communities. But the growth of the sector needs to be matched by increased investment in line with the recommendations of the Everitt report.”

For further information follow this link

Sheffield MPs back community radio campaign

Support Community Radio! Sign the Petition! Click Here!Sheffield MPs are getting behind a campaign for community radio to get a fair share of government funding arrangements for broadcasting. The campaign, launched in July to mark the fifth anniversary of community radio legislation, is led by Sheffield Live! 93.2 FM and by local community broadcasters throughout the UK.

Since legislation was passed, in 2004, more than 200 community radio services have been licensed and around 150 are on air, creating around 400 jobs, involving over 10,000 volunteers, and serving a potential audience of more than 10 million people.

But despite the widely acknowledged success of community radio, stations like Sheffield Live! 93.2 FM are economically precarious with no core funding support. A Community Radio Fund, set up in 2004, has not been increased despite the rapid growth in the number of community radio stations. There is now less than £500,000 per annum to distribute to 150 not-for-profit stations.

Lib Dem Leader and Sheffield Hallam MP, Nick Clegg, who recently visited Sheffield Live! 93.2 FM city centre studios, said: “I am happy to lend my support to your campaign and have written to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport on your behalf”.

Sheffield’s Labour MPs have also voiced their support. Sheffield Attercliffe MP, Clive Betts said he is “happy to support the campaign”. Sheffield Heeley MP Meg Munn, Sheffield Hillsborough MP Angela Smith, Sheffield Central MP Richard Caborn and Sheffield Brightside MP David Blunkett have also confirmed they have written to the Government Minister responsible and are awaiting a response.

Sangita Basudev, Chief Executive of Sheffield Live! 93.2 FM said: “We are delighted our local MPs are with us on this issue. We have over 200 volunteers involved in Sheffield Live! 93.2 FM, but it is a day to day challenge making ends meet in the current economic climate. The Community Radio Fund should support our core operating expenses, but with 150 community radio stations on the air there is just not enough to go round.”

For further information follow this link

Community Radio Online Petition

Support Community Radio! Sign the Petition! Click Here!On 20 July 2009, in an Open Letter to the Prime Minister, community radio leaders, media scholars and experts, including 60 community radio stations, called for a fair settlement for community radio including a sizeable increase in the Community Radio Fund.

Now you can add your voice to their call.

A petition has been launched, backed by community radio stations including Sheffield Live! and calling on the Prime Minister “to support the sustainability and growth of community radio by substantially increasing the resources of the Community Radio Fund.”

Support Community Radio!

Sign the petition!

Tell Your Friends!

For updates follow:
http://twitter.com/allthevoices/

For further information follow this link

Nick Clegg backs community radio campaign

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Lib Dem Leader and Sheffield Hallam MP, Nick Clegg, has pledged his backing to a joint campaign launched by Sheffield Live! 93.2 FM and other community radio stations for a substantial increase in the Community Radio Fund. The government-backed Fund has not grown in size since it was set up in 2005, while the number of community radio stations has increased from 14 to more than 150 on air.

Clegg said, in a letter: “I remember our discussion at Sheffield Live and have seen the letter sent to Gordon Brown on your website. I am happy to lend my support to your campaign.”

Sangita Basudev, Chief Executive of Sheffield Live! 93.2 FM said: “We are delighted to have Nick Clegg’s support. We have written to all of Sheffield’s MPs asking them to get behind the campaign and to ensure a fair settlement for community radio in the current government review.”

The Community Radio Fund is described by Steve Buckley, Director of Sheffield Live! 93.2FM as “.. woefully inadequate” and he’s heading a plea for a fair share of Government funding arrangements for public service broadcasting. Buckley says the new sector is in a precarious situation: “Six stations have failed to launch, three have handed back their licences. Others are at high risk. This is not only a result of the recession but is also a direct consequence of a failure in government policy to ensure funding arrangements keep pace with development.”

You can read read more about the campaign by following this link

An Open Letter To Gordon Brown

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The 20th July marked the fifth anniversary of the legislation that enabled Sheffield Live and other community radio stations to start broadcasting. Since then more than 200 community radio services have been licensed and around 150 are on air, creating around 400 jobs, involving over 10,000 volunteers, and serving a potential audience of more than 10 million people. Ofcom’s latest Annual Report hailed community radio as “one of the great UK broadcasting success stories of the last few years”, but that success could turn to failure if much needed Government support is not forthcoming, according to community radio groups and their supporters.

The Community Radio Fund is described by Steve Buckley, Director of Sheffield Live! 93.2FM as “.. woefully inadequate”. Steve says the new sector is in a precarious situation: “To put it in context, the money available today through the Community Radio Fund to support the operating costs of 150 community radio stations is less than the annual salary of a BBC Radio 1 breakfast DJ.”

An open letter has been written to the Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, signed by 82 community radio leaders, media scholars and experts including representatives of 60 community radio stations, in a bid to raise awareness of the threat to community radio.

Add your support by donating to your local community radio and by writing now to your local MP and the Prime Minister.

You can read and download the letter by following this link