Date and location set for Community Radio Conference

Coventry will host this year’s free Community Radio Conference and Awards on October 23rd.

The Coventry City of Culture Trust has been spotlighting community radio since the launch of the Coventry 2021 project in May, including ‘The Sound of Cov’ which saw eight radio stations from across the region work together to amplify the voices of local people both on-air and on stage. 

In partnership with Creative Lives, and joined by the UK Community Radio Network and the Community Radio Awards, Coventry will be welcoming community radio stations from across the UK to join the city’s stations for a day of networking, learning and engagement at the Coventry Transport Museum.

The conference not only aims to inspire stations but to also encourage collaborative working and partnerships between stations across the UK, with Coventry’s radio stations setting an example of the positive impact working together can have.

The event has been organised in conjunction with the local community radio stations of Coventry, and the UK Community Radio Network, the new national organisation that supports, represents and helps develop Ofcom licensed Community Radio stations across the UK.

Following the conference, the Community Radio Awards will be hosting its sixth annual awards in Coventry for the first time, having previously taken place virtually in 2020 and in Barry in Wales for the last face-to-face awards in 2019.

Nathan Spackman, from the UK Community Radio Network, said: “As an organisation which was created to support licensed community radio managers virtually during the pandemic, we are delighted to be working with Coventry City of Culture Trust to bring our members and the sector together face-to-face to continue that support, learning and sharing.

“Community Radio has been at the heart of communities right across the UK during the pandemic and this is a great opportunity for us to celebrate the success of the sector, during what has been a difficult 18 months.”

Barry Clack, from the UK Community Radio Network, said: “Working together is an important part of having a voice in a sector. The UK Community Radio Network is the voice of its members from problems on a small scale affecting just a few stations to sector-wide issues that need addressing. As that voice, we take situations to the regulators and get create resolutions by working together.

“The pandemic has shown the vital need for local radio in the age of national broadcasters networking more and more. Community Radio has shown the service is much needed and welcomed by listeners locally and long may this continue.”

Martin Steers, Community Radio Awards chair, said: “It's been fantastic working in partnership with the City of Culture team and we're excited to be bringing the awards to Coventry, celebrating all that’s great about community radio, in a city celebrating community and culture with great examples of community radio across Coventry.”

See more and book tickets here.