Today, Friday 15th October, is Local Radio Day, and we join with dozens of radio stations and businesses around the UK to celebrate.
Over the last ten years or so, we’ve repeatedly seen multiple pronouncements declaring “local radio is dead” and “no-one cares about local radio anymore”, we completely disagree!
The previous model of local FM licences combined with huge levels of deregulation has led to consolidation and the emergence of many successful national brands.
However a new tier of local radio has also now emerged taking advantage of more cost-effective technology and cheaper transmission.
Many more local radio stations are set to launch over the next few years as Small Scale DAB (SSDAB) rolls out across the UK.
They’re never going to be market leaders, nor are they going to make anyone particularly wealthy, but they will most certainly delight those listeners who feel the need to be locally connected, something that’s more relevant today than t has been for many years. COVID has taught us how important it is to be local, support local and live local.
The quality of the output may struggle to match those big national brands, but that’s nothing to be embarrassed about since local radio’s strength is in its relatable and informed output delivered by someone who knows how listeners really feel about where they live.
Please support Local Radio Day by listening to your local radio station whether it be commercial, community or BBC. Let’s celebrate the beginning of an exciting new chapter for local radio.
Dom Chambers, Bill Best and Maxine Stride