“Live, from the Number 1 College in England, your new number 1 station.
“By Students, with Students, for Students…. Burnley College Radio.”
That was the sound of a new chapter in Burnley College’s history as Students and staff launched their radio service for the people of Burnley, Blackburn and beyond.
On air, and online at www.burnley.ac.uk/radio, Burnley College Radio is the result of over a year’s work between staff in the College’s award-winning Creative Arts and Media Division, Students, radio professionals and the broadcasting regulator.
A state-of-the-art £50,000 broadcast and podcast studio was created, as well as an intricate network which allows Students to broadcast from multiple locations around Burnley College’s £115 million Campus in the heart of Burnley – and live on DAB digital radio.
Initially, the station will consist of non-stop music and then, over the coming weeks and months, a myriad of amazing programmes will be introduced.
All Learners across the Burnley College Campus are being invited to submit their ideas for shows and podcasts and are taking part in legal training to ensure they are fully aware of UK broadcast law.
Upcoming shows include Chatter Pop – which will “explore all things pop culture!” and Hot Takes – where the team take on tricky cultural questions like “Who would win in a battle between Superman and the Flash.”
The station is also connected directly to the College’s professional performance theatre, which will allow live broadcasts of bands, performances and more.
The DAB licence makes Burnley one of only a handful of Colleges in the UK to offer the opportunity for Students to take to the airwaves
Ed Foulds, Head of Creative Arts and Media and Station Manager, says this is just the beginning:
“With the popularity of podcasts and radio audiences reaching record levels – more than 88% of the population aged 16+ listen to the radio every week – we decided to create the perfect platform for our Media Students to shine.
“With our full commercial licence, we can truly offer a professional-level radio service to Burnley and beyond which will allow our Students to develop real-world industry skills.
“We’ll soon be introducing new programmes which will also be available to download as podcasts, music performed by bands from our music courses, live from our own Performance Theatre, live broadcasts on days such as Results Day and more.
“It won’t simply stay within the Media Department either. With our full Radio and Podcast Enrichment Sessions, every Student who wants to take part will have the opportunity.
“This is just the beginning of an incredible new chapter at Burnley College.”
The switch-on ceremony saw figures from the world of Radio, Students and dignitaries assemble at Burnley College to hear the countdown and launch.
The button was pushed by award-winning Hits Manchester Journalist and Broadcaster Vicky Glover who started her career at local radio station 2BR and is currently receiving plaudits for her documentary podcasts in the wake of the Southport riots.
Listen online at www.burnley.ac.uk/raido and on DAB digital radio.
