'An Application To Ofcom For The FM Independent Local Radio Licence For Hull By Hull Local Radio' by Grant Goddard

AN APPLICATION TO OFCOM FOR THE FM
INDEPENDENT LOCAL RADIO LICENCE
FOR HULL

March 2006

General Information
Details of Applicant

(a)

Name of Applicant, Address, Telephone and Fax nos., E-mail address:
Name:

Humberside Local Radio Limited

Address:

9 Northwood Drive
Hessle
Hull
HU13 0TA

Telephone:

01482 643677

Fax:

01482 649480

E-mail:

admin@hulllocalradio.com

Certificate of Incorporation (Company No. 4607899) attached as Appendix 1.

(b)

Main Contact (For Public Purposes):
Name:
Telephone (day):

01482 643677

Fax:

01482 649480

Email:

sean@hulllocalradio.com

Address:

(c)

Sean Bell

9 Northwood Drive
Hessle
Hull
HU13 0TA

Proposed Station Name (if decided):
HLR [working title]

(d)

Brief Description of Programme Service:
A genuinely local radio station for 35 to 64 year olds, focused on Hull and the surrounding area,
with significant speech content such as local news, interviews and community information
forming an essential part of the output.

(e)

Main Contact (For OFCOM Purposes):
This is to be found in Confidential Appendix 2.

2

Section 105(A) Ability To Maintain Proposed Service
1. Ownership and control of company which will operate the licence
(a) Board of Directors

(i)

Provide the name, occupation, other directorships, other media interests,
background and relevant media experience of each director (executive and nonexecutive), including the proposed chairperson.
The HLR board controls 100% of the shares of HLR. There are just six board
members ensuring a clear simple decision making process The board has a balance
of radio experience supplied by Sean Bell, Nigel Reeve, Dave Parker and Mike
Hammond and local business experience supplied by Paul Sewell and Michael
Oughtred. Full details of the individual members follow:

3


Paul Sewell
(Chairman)
Occupation:

Joint Managing Director, The Sewell Group

Other
Directorships:

Sewell Group plc, Sewell Construction Limited, Sewell Retail Ltd, Bentime
Limited, Sewell Facilities Management Limited, Arcade Decorations
Limited, Sewell Education (Hull) Limited, Hull Citycare (Investments)
Limited, Hull Citycare Limited, Hull Citybuild Limited, Humber Forum
Limited, Hull & Humber Chamber of Commerce

HLR Holding:

Paul represents the 10% of Sewell Construction Ltd Directors Retirement
Benefit Scheme

Background:

Paul was born in Cottingham – youngest of four children of a Hull fruitier
who made up part of a large dynasty of fruit stores in Hull.
Seeking a career in professional football rather than the family business
he spent his school years with Hull City, then Blackpool, Bridlington Town
and North Ferriby. A badly broken leg at 19 ended hopes of full time
professional football so he went to Leeds University to study Building
Construction.
There he met Dennis Sewell – son of the “other” Hull Sewell Family – the
builders – and after both had spells with National Construction
Companies they joined forces in 1978 to take over the then “F Sewell &
Son” from Dennis’ father.
Over the succeeding 20 years they took the traditional Hull Builder of
repute to be one of the most successful companies in the region,
diversifying into retail and facilities management to become Sewell Group
plc in 1997.
Paul has also been active in the wider Hull Community. As a football
coach he took his village side Cottingham from the lower depths of the
Amateur League to two senior titles and matches against his former club
Hull City. Interested in training and development he took early roles with
Hull College, the Construction Industry Training Board and Humberside
TEC.
He was the founder member of the Hull Local Purchasing Initiative and
Champions the true regeneration of Hull by using the Local Economy
through the Chamber of Commerce of which he is a past President. He
has also been elected to be Chair of the Humber Forum – the Sub
Regional Development Agency and has recently been appointed to the
Board of Hull Citybuild – Hulls Urban Regeneration Company.
He is an original Director of Preston Road New Deal for Communities
where he is proud to have been part in winning £55m NDC money to
regenerate the East Hull Community. He has now resigned in favour of a
role as Development Partner to the NDC and the delivery of a brand new
village centre to put the heart back into the estate.

4


Paul has recently stood down from a Board position on Hull’s Local
Strategic Partnership City Vision to concentrate upon his duties as
Shadow Chair and prospective Chief Executive of Hull’s NHS LIFT
Company City Care – the Sewell Group having attained the status as
Private Sector Partner in the £50 million PPP to regenerate the Cities
Primary Health Estate.
His company have also been selected to provide 3 new PFI schools in
York and hence build upon their pioneering work in delivering the first PFI
school in the UK at Victoria Dock in Hull.
Paul has recently been instrumental in bringing the internationally
acclaimed Yorkshire International Business Convention to Hull where he
hosted such names as William Hague, Tim Senders and Hans Blix.

Summary:

Paul is a high profile successful local businessman who is committed to
making HLR a successful business. He will be available to the radio
station at all times spending at least a day a week at the station during
the launch period.

5


Sean Bell
(Deputy Chairman)
Occupation:

Owner of Hull based Commercial Production Company NYPD

Other
Directorships:

Interactive Media Ltd
5.5%

HLR Holding:

Background:

Sean is an award winning radio and television producer, writer and
voice-over artist. He has been a driving force with Hull Local Radio
since its inception in 2002. After leaving school, Sean joined one of the
city’s biggest Advertising Agencies, where he worked for three years,
before moving abroad. On his return in 1990, he worked around the
UK in a freelance capacity across the radio and television production
industry for six years, before taking a staff position with Hull based
Pentagon Communications. Three years later, in 1999, Sean set up
his New Yorkshire Production Department (NYPD), from where he now
works with radio stations and advertising agencies globally, delivering
creative radio commercials, programmes, station imaging and sound
design to theme parks and visitor attractions.
He has a passion for
quality, creative radio, and as well as having worked for some of the
UK’s major radio groups, Sean has also produced drama and
documentaries for the BBC national radio networks, and often writes in
a freelance capacity for a wide range of magazine publications.
Post award Sean will commit at least a day a week to the station
during the launch period.

6


David Parker
(Managing Director)
Occupation:

Station Director, Fresh Radio Limited and HLR

Other
Directorships:

Fresh Radio Limited

HLR Holding:

Background:

One of two Laser Broadcasting Representatives on the board. Laser has a
53.78% holding.
Although Dave Parker has had a lifelong interest in radio, he trained as a
teacher at Durham University and subsequently spent many years
working in local government as a Management Services Officer on ‘value
for money’, efficiency and organisational projects for Wakefield District
Council and West Yorkshire Police. He developed his radio experience
through volunteering at his local hospital radio station, where he was
Programme Controller for more than five years. Additionally, Dave
learned the skills of a technical operator and relief presenter at several
Independent Local Radio stations in the Yorkshire area.
In early 1990, Dave joined Bradford City Radio, one of the Independent
Broadcasting Authority’s ‘incremental’ radio stations. He presented the
breakfast show for a year, working on the English language service of
this unique multi-cultural service.
Dave returned to local government as Press Officer for Wakefield District
Council, while maintaining his freelance work at a number of radio
stations. He was instrumental in forming an applicant group to apply for
the new full-time licence for Wakefield, and operated three trial services
in the City during 1994 and 1995. Dave’s work caught the eye of Lincs
FM plc, which he joined in 1996 to work on a further Restricted Service
Licence, pulling together the final applicant group, local support and,
subsequently, writing the successful Ridings FM licence application.
After licence award, Dave was appointed Managing Director of Ridings FM
and oversaw the launch of the station and its first full year of operation.
Under his direction, the station achieved very respectable audience
figures and a prestigious Sony Radio Award for local news coverage after
just six months on-air.
As part of the Lincs FM plc management team, Dave helped with trial
services and applications in Doncaster, Rugby and, most notably, in
Barnsley where (as a diehard Barnsley Football Club fan) he has been
involved in the operation of match-day Restricted Service Licence
broadcasts for the last ten years.
After leaving Lincs FM, Dave undertook a number of freelance projects,
including contracts for stations in the Radio Investments Group. He was a
regular voice on Stray FM in Harrogate from 2001 to the end of 2005.

7


Dave has always believed in genuine local radio and welcomed the
opportunity to join Fresh Radio in 2003 as Station Manager and, shortly
afterwards, as Managing Director. He has helped to re-position the
station, focusing it firmly on its local roots, and steering it to a Radio
Academy award as Yorkshire and North East Radio Station of The Year for
2004. Dave continues to strengthen the position of Fresh Radio – an AM
service in a diverse, widespread and technically difficult area.

Summary:

Dave counterbalances Paul’s business experience with his 15 years of
radio experience and Management Services background. He will be the
Managing Director overseeing the day-to-day operation of both Fresh
Radio and HLR.

8


Nigel Reeve
(Non Executive Director)
Chief Executive & shareholder in Laser Broadcasting Limited
Occupation:
Other
Directorships:

Laser Broadcasting Limited, Chorley Local Radio Limited, Exeter Local
Radio Limited, Fresh Broadcasting Limited, Hereford Local Radio Limited,
Monmouth Local Radio Ltd, Oxford Local Radio Limited

HLR Holding:

One of two Laser Broadcasting Representatives on the board. Laser has a
53.78% holding.

Background:

Nigel Reeve brings more than 35 years of media experience to the Board.
He began his career with the local newspaper in Ipswich in 1969,
transferring to the fledgling Radio Orwell in 1975. After six years, Nigel
joined 2CR in Bournemouth as Sales Manager. In 1983, he became Sales
Director at County Sound, before moving to Invicta Sound in 1985. Later,
as Managing Director of Invicta, he helped deliver a £1m profit and
subsequent stock market flotation. Between 1989 and 1992 Nigel was
Chairman of the Commercial Radio Advertising Awards, where he
championed improvements in the standard of radio commercials.
During this same period he headed up a radio sale training company that
held monthly sales training courses for local sales staff in the UK radio
industry. Between 1986-1988 Nigel trained over 66% of all local sales
staff in UK radio.
In 1991, Nigel joined the launch team of Classic FM, the UK’s first national
commercial radio station, with responsibility for all sales and marketing at
the station. During this period the station delivered revenue far beyond
expectations partly due to the innovative policies introduced by Nigel. He
was responsible for selling the largest ever radio campaign in the history
of UK commercial radio–a three year sponsorship and airtime package
sold to Cross and Blackwell valued at over £3 million. He also introduced
a quarterly advertising creative award that precluded the current Radio
Aerials award.
In 1995 Nigel also took responsibility for all sales and marketing at
Classic FM’s radio stations in Holland, Sweden and Finland.
After a very successful five years, Nigel was approached by London News
Radio and became Chief Executive there in 1996, transforming a lossmaking station into a profitable business by 1999. At the end of 1999,
Nigel established Fusion Radio Holdings, purchasing two radio stations in
London and a third in Oxford. In September 2001, Nigel merged Fusion
with Milestone Radio Limited, giving the new company controlling
interests in additional stations in Newbury, Rugby and Basingstoke.
Nigel formed Laser Broadcasting Limited in 2002, to bid for local FM radio
station licenses and to develop holdings in existing commercial radio
businesses, as part of the company’s long-term strategy to build interests
in a group of locally focused radio stations.

9


Nigel is an experienced media sales trainer, radio station manager and
businessman.
He brings this expertise, and over 30 years of radio-based knowledge,
to the Board of Humberside Local Radio.

Summary:

Post award Nigel will continue to be involved as part of Laser’s
contract to spend a minimum of 30 hours a month supplying support
services to HLR.

10


Mike Hammond
Occupation:

Radio Station Manager and Radio Sales Training Specialist.

Other
Directorships:

None

HLR Holding:

Mike represents the Hull Broadcasting Partnership 26.36% holding on the
HLR board

Background:

Mike started his radio career in 1985 at Radio Aire in Leeds progressing
from a trainee sales executive to a senior member of the sales team. In
1993 he moved to Yorkshire Coast Radio as its launch Sales Manager
before joining Yorkshire Dales Radio as Sales Manager in 1996. His
experience in launching stations proved invaluable when he joined
Huddersfield FM as its launch Sales Manager in 1997 before becoming
Launch Director and Managing Director of Oak FM in Loughborough in
1998.
In 2001 Mike launched his own training company, Creative Training,
specialising in radio management training plus sales, presentation,
production, promotions, marketing, research and recruitment. Mike has
travelled extensively training radio personal in Europe and the Far East.

Summary:

Post award Mike will take the role of Station Manager overseeing the day
to day running of the business, leading the sales team and using his sales
training skills to build a firm revenue base.

11


Michael Oughtred
Occupation:

Vice Chairman & Corporate Development Director of William Jackson and
Son Limited

Other
Directorships:

William Jackson and Son Limited, Non Executive Chairman of Oughtred &
Harrison Limited

HLR Holding:

4.36%

Background:

Michael is Vice Chairman & Corporate Development Director of William
Jackson and Son Limited, winners of the 2004 J P Morgan Private Bank
Family Business Honours Award for Governance. The company is a fifthgeneration Hull based family food business, founded in 1851 in Hull and is
based in the city to this day. Household brands under the Jackson
umbrella include Jacksons Stores, Tryton Foods, Kwoks Foods and
Hazeldene Foods.
Michael is also Non Executive Chairman of Oughtred & Harrison Limited, a
role he has held for 16 years. The company is a successful third
generation family business based in Hull experiencing major growth over
the last 7 years due to investment in new business opportunities and a
strong principle of rewarding success.
He is the former President of the Hull & Humber Chamber of Commerce
and is currently Vice President of the Yorkshire and Humber Chamber of
Commerce and Chairman of Hull Truck Theatre Company Limited – an
award winning regional theatre company.

Summary:

Michael combines with Paul Sewell to give HLR two of the most highly
rated businessmen in the area. He has committed to spending at least
one day a week to the radio company during its launch period.

12

(b) Proposed Investors And Shareholding Structure

(ii)

If there are firm plans to appoint any further directors, provide information
(with details of any specific individuals in mind). This information may be
submitted in confidence.
There are currently no further plans to appoint additional directors

Full details of the shareholding structure should be provided, including:
(i)

Names and addresses (the latter may be submitted in confidence) of all
existing or proposed shareholders.
The HLR shareholders are as follows:
HLR Shareholders
Laser Broadcasting Ltd
Hull Broadcasting Partnership
Sewell Construction Ltd Directors
Retirement Benefit Scheme
Sean Bell
Michael Oughtred

(ii)

Crowther Rd, Washington, NE38 0BW
Victoria House, 82 Beverley Road, Hull, HU3 1YD
Geneva Way, Leads Road, Hull HU7 0DG
9 Northwood Drive, Hessle, Hull, HU13 0TA
Uplands, 5 Brimley, Molescroft Road, Beverley, HU17 7EE

Total number, class/classes of shares and issue price of shares (specify
voting, non-voting, preference, other etc).
Post award there will be 200,000 A ordinary shares in issue. All shares will
be voting shares.

(iii)

All voting shareholders and holders of 5% or more of non-voting shares and
loan stock should be named. State the number, class/classes and price of
shares to be issued to each investor.
The full shareholder list is as follows:
HLR Shareholder Holdings
Laser Broadcasting Ltd

Total Shares
107,553

Hull Broadcasting Partnership
Sewell Construction Ltd Directors Retirement Benefit Sc
Sean Bell
Michael Oughtred
Total

% Price Per Share
Total Investment
53.78%
£3.10
£333,413

52,722
26.36%
20,000
10.00%
11,000
5.50%
8,725
4.36%
200,000 100.00%

£3.10
£3.10
£3.10
£3.10

£163,439
£62,000
£34,100
£27,048
£619,999

The shareholder structure has deliberately been designed to encourage
small local investors to become involved in HLR through the Hull
Broadcasting Partnership which has had its roots in the community for the
last five years.
(iv)

Outline any shareholders agreements or arrangements which exist.
There is currently a signed shareholders agreement in place covering the
authorised share capital, shareholder protection, confidentiality, funding,
assignment, intellectual property and conflicts of interest. A full copy can be
supplied if required.

13


(v)

Where a corporate body other than a current Ofcom licensee will be
providing 30% or more of the required funding, details should be given of
its directors and main shareholders, and of its activities.
Laser Broadcasting was formed in 2002 initially to work with local groups to
bid for new licence applications. Since then it has expanded to include
station ownership and is currently negotiating to purchase a number of
current licences. During the course of this application process it hopes to
complete a number of these purchases and Ofcom will be informed of this
development. As of 27th February 2006 Laser is also a 25% shareholder in
Fresh Radio, the Yorkshire Dales licence holder.
Current Laser Directors and main shareholders are as follows:
Hugh Morgan Williams, Chairman
Hugh was one of the first employees of Metro Radio and went on to work for
LBC/IRN and Middlesbrough based Radio Tees. He was then a founding
director of Minster Sound in York followed by Chairman of Galaxy
Radio North East.
He is currently chairman of leading radio equipment supplier, Canford Audio
and chairman of the CBI's SME Council. Hugh brings a vast amount of radio
and business experience to the Laser board.
Nigel Reeve, Chief Executive Officer
See HLR Directors.
David Bickle, Finance Director
David is a member of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants
and the Chartered Institute of Certified Accountants. He worked for Trimoco
and Marconi before running his own manufacturing company for 14 years
before a successful trade sale.
For the last 10 years he has specialised in developing start up companies
and SME’s with his most recent venture, Angel Biotechnology being floated
on the stock market in October 2005.
Charles May, Non Executive Director
Charles is the Divisional Director of Wise Speke, a wholly owned subsidiary
of Brewin Dolphin Securities. He has been involved in the investment world
for 35 years and has backed Laser as a start up business with the potential
to grow into a major member of the radio industry.
Alan Mullett, Director of Development
Alan started his career working for the Wolverhampton Express and Star
before joining Beacon Radio in 1976 firstly as Sales Executive before
becoming Sales Director and then Managing Director in 1987, a role he
continued in until 1996. During this time Alan increased annual turnover
from £1.6 million to £3.9 million and in his final year at the station delivered
a profit of £1.09m. He also successfully applied for and launched the Telford
and Shrewsbury licence in addition to launching Radio WABC on the AM
frequency.

14

Chrysalis plc owned Heart FM and Capital plc (now GCap) owned BRMB
overlapped the four stations controlled by Beacon Broadcasting and
Communications Ltd.
Despite this fierce competition the Beacon stations consistently maintained
the dominant position in terms of market share and regularly delivered the
highest revenue per listener in the industry.
Alan also played a part in the development of commercial radio in the UK.
Operating in a highly competitive market, he pioneered the packaging of
commercial airtime to maximise local revenue and created of training,
administration and management modules for use in the sector. He was also
Chairman of the Radio Advertising Awards.
After guiding the company through a financial reconstruction, which ended
in the acquisition of Beacon by GWR Plc, Alan left Beacon and formed
Motionsound Ltd, a vehicle created to apply for radio licences.
Currently Managing Director of Instep UK Limited, a management and
organisational consultancy he advises number of organisations on their
development and organisational strategy. He has worked for clients such as
Cheltenham & Gloucester Building Society, Microsoft, Johnson & Johnson,
British Telecom and Glaxo Smith Kline. Alan joined Laser Broadcasting in
January 2006 with responsibility for the long-term strategy and the project
management of the AIM flotation and fund raising initiatives.
Stuart Linnell MBE, Director of Projects
Stuart has worked in the radio industry for 35 years. In 1985, he was
appointed Managing Director of Coventry based Mercia Sound before
becoming the Deputy Managing Director and Operations Director of
Midlands Radio plc in 1990. Since the mid nineties, he has worked
extensively for BBC national radio, BBC TV, Sky Sports News, Radio 5 Live
and talkSport. He has won 3 prestigious Sony Awards and 2 New York Radio
Festival Awards. In 1994, he was awarded an MBE for services to
broadcasting. Stuart joined Laser in the spring of 2005.
David Mortimer, Director of Projects
David has worked in radio for 14 years and was, until 2005, Managing
Director of Quaywest FM where he managed a buy out from its previous
owners. He also negotiated the purchase of BCR FM from Chrysalis before
this. Prior to this he was an accountant, is a member of Acma, the Institute
of Cost and Management Accounting and has a BSc (Hons) in Accounting
and Financial Analysis at the University of Warwick. David joined Laser in
the summer of 2005.
Will Westley, Director of Strategy
Will brings more than 20 years experience of strategic development of
business to the Team. His extensive work building for rapid growth,
efficiency and excellent service delivers highly profitable, successful
enterprises. He most recently delivered the first ‘Live Digital TV and Digital
Radio Broadcast to Mobile phones’, as Director of Operations for BT
Livetime, BT PLC. This breakthrough development enhancing the U.K. DAB
network and optimising convergent digital IP technologies is seen by the
industry as a most significant contribution to Digital Audio Broadcasting. Will
enjoys senior relationships with Ofcom and the Department of Culture Media
and Sport (DCMS).

15


Laser Main Shareholders
Total
Full Name
Shares Holding
Hugh Morgan Williams 10,940
1.88%
Nigel Reeve
105,000
18.00%
NEL Ltd
225,384
38.64%
Charles May
77,240
13.24%
Keith Rawlings
35,000
6.00%
John Roberts
50,000
8.57%
David Hulf
15,000
2.57%
Others
64757
11.10%
583,321 100.00%
vi)

Ofcom may request additional information (e.g. a banker’s letter,
statutory/management accounts) regarding the shareholders, or any other
providers of finance, listed in the application.
This can be supplied if required.

16

Ownership and control of company which will operate the licence
(c) Involvement of the Applicant in Specified Activities
Involvement of the Applicant in Specified Activities

Details are required of the involvement by the applicant and its participants (including
shareholders or other subscribers of more than 5% of the applicants total funding
requirements) in any of the activities listed below, and the extent of the interest. For these
purposes, the applicant includes associates of the applicant (i.e. directors and their associates
and other group companies).
(a)

Advertising agencies:
None

(b)

Newspapers:
None

(c)

Other broadcasting interests:
See Laser Broadcasting Ltd above

(d)

Bodies whose objects are wholly or mainly of a religious nature:
None

(e)

Bodies whose objects are wholly or mainly of a political nature:
None

(f)

Local authorities:
None

(g)

Other publicly-funded bodies:
None

*Applicants should note that this information is required for the purposes of checking
compliance with the ownership rules, and is not relevant to an applicant’s ability to maintain its
proposed service. If none of the categories above apply to the application this should be clearly
stated.

17

2. Financial And Business Plan
(a) Overall Financial Strategy

Provide a concise summary of how the applicant considers it is able to establish and maintain,
throughout the licence period, its proposed service, and how this licence fits in with the
investors’ strategy.
The philosophy behind the HLR financial projections and growth strategy is
as follows:
Broadcast Area
When finalising the broadcast area HLR considered a larger TSA with
coverage both north and south of the Humber estuary and a smaller area
but with a stronger reach north of the estuary and across to the East Riding
of Yorkshire. After local consultations (see answer to Question 7) it is clear
that the area has a strong local identity and does not historically associate
with Lincolnshire and south of the Humber. Therefore it was decided to
broadcast to the smaller area of north of the Humber and the East Ridings.
This produced a population of 368,830 compared to an advertised area of
over 400,000 adults. The lower figure has been used on all audience and
revenue calculations.
Income Projections
Revenue projects are based on conservative audience projections over the
first five years producing achievable listening hours. These hours have then
been multiplied by the industry average revenue per thousand hours
listened producing an achievable revenue target. In years one a further
10% has been deducted, year two sees the average figure reduced by 5%
and the current average figure (as of 3rd March 2006) has been used in
years 3-5.
Laser Position
Laser Broadcasting has a 53.78% holding in HLR and a 25% holding fellow
Yorkshire station, Fresh Radio. This holding will be increased in May 2006
and Ofcom will be informed of the new percentage at that time.
Laser is currently supplying accountancy, commercial trafficking, IT,
commercial production, training and a full administrative service to Fresh
Radio. Fresh Radio is also moving to new premises in Skipton and Laser is
moving its administrative offices to within Fresh Radio. This policy has
reduced Fresh Radio’s running costs.
Laser Broadcasting will supply the same services to HLR, as already agreed
and ratified in a Service Level Agreement that can be supplied on request.
Working with Fresh
There will be a close working relationship between HLR and Fresh Radio
through their joint shareholder Laser Broadcasting.
The stations will have a joint Managing Director (Dave Parker) who will have
the responsibility of ensuring the stations share resources and exploit sales
opportunities. Dave Parker will sit on both the HLR and Fresh Radio boards.
In addition Mike Hammond, the HLR Station Manager will move from Fresh
where he is currently working with the Fresh sales team.
Cashflow policy
When considering the cashflow requirements, following extensive long-term
research, the HLR board have raised sufficient funds not to need an
overdraft unless the revenue forecasts are 20% below expectations for the
first three years.

18

(a) Overall Financial Strategy & (b) Funding
Dividend policy
The board of HLR have set a prudent policy of working towards a dividend in
year five in line with the financial projects below.. Financial projections have
been produced for the first 3 years covering the period until the first
significant profit is shown. Projected profits in years 4 and 5 will enable HLR
to pay a dividend at the end of year 5. A full breakdown can be supplied if
required.
(b)

Funding

Detail the sources of finance that will be used to fund the licence, under the following headings:
(i)

Share capital
200,000 shares will be issued post award raising £620,000 ensuring the
radio station does not need an overdraft unless revenue drops by over 20%
on the current projections.

(ii)

Loan stock
None

(iii)

Leasing/HP facilities (capital value)
The only leasing will be a vehicle for the Station Manager (£20,000) and 4
sales cars (Average £7,000 each). The total value will be £48,000.

(iv)

Bank overdraft
HLR has carried out sensitivity analysis on its income projections and will
not need an overdraft even if revenue falls by 20%. However the company’s
bankers have indicated that a facility would be available if required.

(v)

Grants and donations
None

(vi)

Other (please specify)
None

Where relevant, provide information on:
(i)

Loan terms (e.g. interest rate, repayment terms, redemption/conversion
terms)
Not applicable

(ii)

Assets leased
Company vehicles will be the only leasing arrangement. Three separate
quotes are available although the final decision on vehicles will be made
after the award. Therefore a final quotation is not included.

All of the funding above should be confirmed to the applicant. Explanation should be provided if
this is not the case.

19

(c) Financial Projections

The purpose of this question is to allow the applicant to demonstrate its understanding of the
market. The forecasts should be based on reasonable assumptions, that are logically applied
and justifiable.
THE LOCAL NEWSPAPER MARKET
The projected Total Survey Area of Hull Local Radio is almost identical to the
existing circulation area of the Hull Daily Mail, the regional daily newspaper,
which has a circulation of 68,371 and a 249,951 weekly reach. Part of the
Northcliffe local newspaper group owned by the Daily Mail & General Trust,
The Hull Daily Mail first published in 1885 and has a loyal readership
throughout the East Riding, where it is re-titled The East Riding Mail.
The Hull Advertiser series is similarly owned by Northcliffe, delivering a
weekly free newspaper to 75% of households in Hull and 45% in the East
Riding through five different titles with a combined weekly circulation of
158,690. Spin-off publications include The Journal, an upmarket glossy
magazine delivered free to homes in the East Riding, Beverley and Hull;
Stop Out, a youth-targeted glossy magazine comprising fashion,
entertainment and clubs/pubs content; The Wedding Journal, an annual A4
magazine delivered free to homes; and Auto Weekly, a free pick-up
magazine with a 20,000 print-run.
There is little competition against Northcliffe’s dominance of the local press
market. The Yorkshire Post sells only 1,562 copies in Hull and only 3,805 in
the East Riding.
THE LOCAL RADIO MARKET
Radio listening is as popular ever in the Hull area, with 91% of adults
listening to radio each week. What has changed dramatically over recent
years is the shift of the audience away from commercial radio services and
towards BBC stations. Six years ago, commercial radio attracted 51% of
listening (versus 48% for the BBC), whereas now commercial radio attracts
only 42% of listening (versus 57% for the BBC).
Six years ago, Viking FM was the market leader with an 18% share, but it
now ranks fifth with only a 9% share. Over the same time period, Magic
1161’s share has fallen from 5% to 3%. Both heritage stations have lost
more audience than any other station in the market, during a time when
there have been no new station launches or new competitors entering the
market.
Viking FM has lost audience almost equally from all demographics. Its share
in 15-24 year olds has fallen from 33% to 14%, in 25-34 year olds from
32% to 19%, and in 35-44 year olds from 24% to 15%. HLR’s market
research has clearly shown that this huge loss of interest in Viking FM is due
to:
• Lack of local content
• Poor quality presenters
• High repetition of a small library of songs
• A lack of variety of music artists
• Poorly compiled music playlists

20

The most obvious negative to the audience is the Viking FM breakfast show,
which fails to attract an audience significantly higher than the remainder of
the day’s output. Six years ago, the Viking FM breakfast show peaked at 6%
of the available audience, whereas now it barely reaches 3%.
The long-term and extensive market research over three years
demonstrated that the audience that used to listen to Viking FM has since
migrated to several other stations, including BBC Radio Two, BBC Radio
Humberside and Galaxy Yorkshire. None of these stations completely
satisfied the defecting listeners. Many people voiced the opinion that BBC
Radio Humberside broadcast considerably more local content than Viking FM
but was seen as quite fuddy-duddy. BBC Radio Two was considered more
entertaining but contained no local content whatsoever. Galaxy Yorkshire
was an option for young people but held little interest for anyone over the
age of 35.
BBC Radio Two has benefited most from Viking FM’s decline, and is now the
market leader. Its share of listening has increased from 12% to 15% since
1999. BBC Radio Humberside has also gained, with its share up from 9% to
14% over the same period. Galaxy Yorkshire has increased its share from
5% to 8%.
Local commercial stations broadcasting from outside the Viking FM survey
area have a strong following, currently attracting 13% of listening (though
this figure went as high as 19% three years ago). The failure of Viking FM
and Magic 1161 to maintain their audiences is demonstrated by the fact that
their combined share of listening (11.7%) is now less than that of stations
based outside their survey area (13%).
The HLR research demonstrates that both the out-of-area stations (Minster
FM, Lincs FM, etc) and the BBC stations are failing to completely satisfy the
substantial radio audience in Hull who desire a station that:
• Is committed to local content
• Plays a wide variety of music
• Repeats specific songs or artists less frequently
• Is less fuddy-duddy than BBC local radio
• Is committed to a breakfast show that has mass appeal
• Hires presenters who talk about Hull rather than themselves
• Reaches out specifically to a 35+ audience
The opportunity for HLR is to implement the results of the market research
and launch a station that deliberately satisfies the desires of the local
population, whilst avoiding the deficiencies that they have identified in
existing stations.
[Details of the market research quoted here are itemised in answers to
Question 6.]

21


The applicant should provide financial projections on an annual basis for the licence. The
projections must include:
(i)

Profit and loss accounts
See Appendix 3

(ii)

Balance sheets
See Appendix 3

(iii)

Cash-flow forecasts
See Appendix 3

The period covered is at the discretion of the applicant, but should be justified. The forecasts
should be supplied on an Excel spreadsheet or similar, with any accompanying guidance notes.
The applicant must also complete and submit the spreadsheet entitled ‘Financial Template’
located at www.ofcom.org.uk/radio/ifi/rl/commer/ar/lapr/ftap.xls using information from its
business model.
The Financial Template is attached as Appendix 4
This section must include a full listing of the underlying assumptions on which the financial
projections are based, relating such assumptions clearly to other parts of the application (e.g.
proposed format, extent of coverage area)
The applicant should detail how revenue figures were derived, distinguishing between local,
national and sponsorship revenue.
The response to this question may be submitted in confidence.
Assumptions detailed in confidential Appendix 5

22

(d) Audience Projections

Provide the following information:
(i)

The projected adult (aged 15+) population of the Total Survey Area (TSA)
within which it is intended to measure the listenership of the service.
The projected adult population (aged 15+) is 368,830. This has been
derived from 2001 Census data and the coverage prediction supplied by
Arqiva [see answer to Question 3].
The population count has been
calculated against a signal strength of 54 dBuV/m and above.
According to Arqiva’s analysis of data from the 2001 Census, the population
within the Total Survey area comprises:
• 51% females;
• 98% of the population describe themselves as “white”;
• 44% of the adult population are within ABC1 socio-economic class and
56% are C2DE;
• 12% of the employed adult population are “managers & senior officials”;
• 9% of the employed adult population are “professionals”;
• 66% of households own their own home.

(ii)

Projections for listenership ratings (e.g. weekly reach, average weekly hours
of listening) over the first three years of the service, with detailed
demographic breakdowns as appropriate.
The Board’s analysis
performance will be:

Adult (15+) TSA
Weekly reach %
Reach #
Average hours/week
Total hours

has

determined

that

YEAR ONE
368,830
17 %
62,701
8.0 hrs
501,608

the

station’s

YEAR TWO
368,830
18 %
66,389
9.0 hrs
597,501

projected

YEAR THREE
368,830
19 %
70,077
10.0 hrs
700,770

Extensive, independent and professional market research over the last three
years [see answers to Question 6] has demonstrated the wide appeal of the
proposed radio station to a substantial proportion of the potential audience
between the ages of 35 and 64. This age group comprises 48% of the adult
population of Hull and the East Riding of Yorkshire. Additionally, there is
likely to be some overlap of the station’s appeal to 30-34 and 65-70 year
olds, who comprise a further 13% of the adult population.

23


(iii)

The expected impact of the proposed service on existing services, in
listenership terms.
The impact of Hull Local Radio on existing services within its Total Survey
Area at the end of Year One is summarised in the table below:
IMPACT ASSESSMENT OF HLR ON HULL RADIO MARKET (368,830 TSA) - YEAR ONE
ALL
RADIO

BBC R
BBC HUMBER
RADIO 2
SIDE

BBC
RADIO 4

BBC
RADIO 1

VIKING
GALAXY
CLASSIC BBC RADIO
FM YORKSHIRE HULL L.R.
FM FIVE LIVE

MAGIC
1161

pre-launch
W EEKLY REACH (000)
% REACH
TOTAL HOURS (000)
AVERAGE HOURS
MARKET SHARE

336
91%
8760
26.1

103
28%
1343
13.0

74
20%
1180
16.0

63
17%
953
15.2

77
21%
798
10.3

74
20%
767
10.4

74
20%
693
9.4

41
11%
398
9.8

41
11%
316
7.8

18
5%
243
13.2

100.0%

15.2%

13.8%

10.6%

9.3%

9.0%

8.1%

4.7%

3.6%

2.7%

394

309

230

4.4%

3.4%

2.6%

end of Year One
W EEKLY REACH (000)
% REACH
TOTAL HOURS (000)
AVERAGE HOURS
MARKET SHARE

8988

1314

1093

948

783

701

669

100.0%

14.6%

12.2%

10.5%

8.7%

7.8%

7.4%

63
17%
502
8.0
5.6%

The launch of HLR will increase hours listened to all radio by 3% in Year One
to 8,988,000 hours. Hull Local Radio will rank seventh in the market with a
6% share of listening in Year One, a performance that is projected to
improve by 40% by Year Three.
The launch of Hull Local Radio is projected to reduce listening hours to these
stations by these amounts within the station’s Total Survey Area in Year
One:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
(iv)

BBC Radio Humberside
Viking FM
BBC Radio Two
Galaxy 105
BBC Radio One
Magic 1151
BBC Radio 5 Live
Virgin Radio
TalkSport
BBC Radio Four
Classic FM
BBC Radio Three
Other stations

87,039 hours per week less

The basis on which the estimates above have been calculated, and any
assumptions taken into account.
Audience Projections:
The Board’s projections for the performance of the station in its first three
years, based on deep local knowledge, have been derived from statistical
analysis of empirical data from RAJAR ratings reports [1999Q2 to 2005Q3].

24

A benchmark was provided by the start-up performances of all 21 local (not
regional) commercial radio stations with Total Survey Areas of between
100,000 and 300,000 that have commenced broadcasting since 1999 and
have participated in RAJAR. Their average performance at the end of each
of their first three years on-air was as follows:
YEAR ONE
Weekly reach %
Average
hours/week

17.2 %
9.4 hrs

YEAR TWO
18.2%
8.6 hrs

YEAR
THREE
18.6%
9.7 hrs

Hull Local Radio’s programme format is comparable to the stations included
in this analysis, and its target audience, like those stations, is by no means
a niche demographic. These figures were rounded and revised with a more
natural year-on-year progression to arrive at the projections for the
station’s performance in the first three years. The year-on-year increase in
hours listened has been approximated to 20% for Years Two and Three, a
rate of growth observed in start-up stations in similarly sized markets.
Impact on existing services:
•

•

The Board’s projections for the impact of the new station on existing
broadcasters have been derived from quantitative market research
[see Research Project #5] in which respondents who indicated they
would listen to the new local radio station were asked how they
would make time to listen. Some respondents answered that they
would listen to the radio longer, while others said they would listen
to existing stations for less time or not at all.
Listening to Hull Local Radio is assumed to replace listening to an
existing station on an hour-for-hour basis, a simplification of the real
situation where listeners are more likely to add a station to their
listening menu and share time between them (if anything, this
results in an overestimation of the impact on existing services, and
an underestimation of the new listening added to the market).

The results show that:
• 228,232 hours per week listening to Hull Local Radio is “new
listening” that has been added within the market;
• the remainder of the total 501,608 hours per week listening to Hull
Local Radio in Year One is derived from listeners replacing former
listening to existing stations.
These changes in hours listened to different stations have then been applied
to the “pre-launch” snapshot of the Hull market. Although recognised to be
a simplification of the complex radio listening dynamics, and to be based on
assumptions about the local market, the results nevertheless give some
indication as to the anticipated impact of Hull Local Radio on existing radio
stations and its projected position in the market after its first year on-air.

25

3. Transmission Proposals

(i)

Provide details of the transmission site you propose to use, under the
following headings:

(a)

Name and National Grid Reference of site
Site Name:
National Grid Reference:

(b)

High Hunsley
SE 945 350

Height of site above Ordnance datum (in metres)
164 metres

(c)

Height of transmitting aerial above ground level
64.5 metres

(d)

Radiated power in either or both planes of polarisation, and aerial radiation
pattern (if no aerial radiation pattern is submitted, it will be assumed
without exception to be omni-directional).
Radiated Power:
Pattern:

500 watts vertical + 500 watts horizontal
Antenna pattern is Directional. A copy of the radiated
pattern is included as Appendix 6.

The applicant should confirm whether he believes that his intended mast aperture will be
available, and whether, where required, planning permission can be obtained. Where
appropriate, evidence to support this belief should be provided. Details of any negotiations
which have been entered into with the site owner should also be provided.
Arqiva has informed Hull Local Radio that it owns the High Hunsley site and
the existing antenna system used by Viking FM. This can be made suitable
for sharing. Planning permission is not required for the changes required
and can be accommodated within the present building. The site provides
excellent coverage for Hull, the East Riding and the surrounding area.
The information provided above must take into account any requirements set out in Section 2
of this Notice. In the event of minor non-compliance, Ofcom may revisit an applicant’s
proposals with a view to modest adjustment following award and closer scrutiny. Significant
non-compliance may render the application liable to disqualification.
(ii)

Please provide a detailed computer predicted map (in colour) of the
coverage anticipated using the transmission site and parameters described
above.
Arqiva Coverage Predictions for the area are attached as Appendix 7.

26

3. Transmission Proposals

(iii)

Describe proposed arrangements for transmission provision (installation,
maintenance and repair). The transmission system and equipment must
comply with the Engineering Code originally published by the Radio
Authority, which represents Ofcom’s current policy, and is available at
www.ofcom.org.uk/radio/ifi/rl/commer/ar/
Arqiva is well resourced to install the complete system and subsequently
maintain and monitor the transmission parameters. Telemetry and remote
monitoring systems provide critical information back to Arqiva’s control
centre (carrier power, lack of modulation, etc.) on a 24-hour basis. Arqiva’s
maintenance personnel are highly trained with the necessary spares and
test equipment to resolve any problem quickly.

(iv)

What is the anticipated time lapse between the award of licence and start of
broadcasting? Applicants should note that failure to commence broadcasting
the service within two years of the date on which the licence is awarded is
likely to lead to the offer of a licence to the successful applicant being
withdrawn. In these circumstances the licence would be advertised afresh
and a new competition would be held to award the licence.
Hull Local Radio plans to launch within 26 weeks of the licence award.

27

Section 105(B) and (C) Catering For Tastes And Interests And
Broadening Choice
4. Programming Philosophy

(a)

This subsection of the application should take the form of a statement
setting out the applicant’s overall programming philosophy and vision for
the radio service.
MUSIC
It is already something of a present-day cliché, but by no means an
understatement, to say that local commercial radio stations all sound the
same.
Even the most casual sampling of stations in any given area makes it almost
impossible to detect a significant difference between one station and the
next by the music they play. It is by no means unusual to even hear the
same record being played at the same time by different stations in the same
area.
This has occurred because:
•

Stations’ music policies have become driven by, in part, the easy
option of playing hit singles categorised by era – 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s –
and, in part, by music programmers being encouraged to explore that
easy option because radio groups perceive it to be the “safe” way of
building and maintaining audiences. It is also symptomatic of the
“lowest common denominator” programming and presentation style
that pervades and has come to define UK commercial radio.

•

The Guinness Book of Hit Singles, an important and remarkably useful
research tool, has become relied upon as the foundation stone of UK
commercial radio music programming, rather than as just one part,
albeit a fundamental part, of a music programmer’s toolbox.

•

RCS Selector music scheduling software has too often become used as
a substitute for the human touch in music programme production. It
is a classic example of software being allowed to govern a situation,
rather than it being used, once again, as a tool of the trade that
enables the execution of a carefully considered strategy.

It is little wonder that BBC Radio Two has become established as the
nation’s most popular radio station, with an imaginative music policy and
innovative programme scheduling. Where the BBC has invested in local
radio, it too has delivered creative, original and entertaining programming.
A combination of selective listening to BBC national and local radio services
by our target audience of 35 to 64 year olds has often been at the expense
of local commercial radio.
HLR will address these issues by implementing a music philosophy that
places an experienced human musical ‘ear’ at the heart of its scheduling and
programming. All our presenters will be involved in the overall selection of
the station’s music within a clear, core policy, guided by a senior presenter
with responsibility for ensuring compliance with the policy across the entire
station output.

28

Broadening Choice

It would be foolish to pretend that there is no place for Top Twenty hits, as
defined by the Guinness Book of Hit Singles, but rather than dominate the
output with a limited number of tracks on high rotation, they will be used by
HLR to punctuate and underpin the station sound. This will be characterised
by two distinct elements – the station’s commitment to speech, addressed
below – and by a staple diet of quality album tracks.
Throughout our research, the station’s target audience of 35 to 64 year olds
has repeatedly called for something other than the regular diet of the same
old hits, played over and over again. The continual repetition of a small
selection of Top Twenty singles is regarded by listeners as highly irritating.
Nor is the target audience locked in a time warp that calls for music only
from a particular era. A considerable amount of current music holds great
appeal for 35 to 64 year olds, and artists such as Katie Melua, James Blunt,
Michael Buble, Scissor Sisters, David Gray and Jamie Cullum attract support
through both album sales and concert attendance.
All these artists have recorded hit singles, but these are often headline
tracks from an album that offers many additional tracks that would be
highly appropriate for radio play but rarely, if ever, receive it. When they
do, it is usually only from the BBC. HLR will certainly not want to be
regarded as an “album track” station, but rather as one that plays really
great music, be it a hit single or an album track.
The core values of our music programming will be:
•
•
•
•

A distinctive and popular foundation of quality album tracks by topselling album artists;
A flavouring of Top Twenty hit singles from the past forty years,
though not dominated by an era-determined policy;
A variety of genres throughout the broadcast day to provide an
essentially eclectic sound;
A selection of artists with a mature approach and songs with
intelligent lyrics to characterise the station as “grown-up radio for
grown-up people”.

SPEECH
HLR will be an inclusive service in which speech will play a targeted but
prominent role. When we talk, we will seek to reflect the character of the
area and encourage the active participation and the engagement of local
people.
Contact with our audience will be fundamental to our speech output, with
phone-in, text and e-mail access used regularly within our programming,
thus making local voices a key element of the sound and style of the radio
station. Our audience will play a critical role in determining the direction
of programmes with their on-air and off-air contributions. We will
encourage listeners to use the HLR website which will become an
important supportive resource to our programme output.
The programme content will provide everyone living in and around Hull
with information vital to everyday living. Our news and sport programmes

29

Broadening Choice

will keep the audience up to date with the latest events in the local area, in
the UK and in the rest of the world. News and sports summaries, as well as
traffic and weather information, will appear regularly throughout the day.
Public sector organisations involved in the regeneration of Hull will be able
to use the station to convey their messages to the local population.
(b)

The strategies which the applicant proposes to implement in regard to:
•

catering for the tastes and interests, general or particular, of
persons living in the area;

Programming
In a market otherwise served by commercial stations that concentrate
almost solely on popular music, HLR will be essential listening for anyone
who wants news, information and discussion on the issues that matter most
to Hull, all set in an accessible, entertaining context. It will provide a forum
for listeners to discuss and debate things that are important to them, from
war to weather, from sport to fashion, from pubs to politics, all laced with
music that reflects tastes of the target age group of 35-54.
Contemporary media in all its forms plays a central role in most people’s
everyday lives, influencing the way they eat, speak, dress and even
undress. It is also central to the way society functions, affecting and
reflecting views and opinions on such issues as crime and punishment,
whether and how to aid the poor in other countries or our own, and across a
huge range of other social and moral current affairs. HLR is deeply sensible
to the responsibility it will have in this regard, particularly in an area like
Hull where social deprivation and urban regeneration have become the dayto-day agenda for those engaged in guiding the area’s current and future
well-being.
As our research shows [see answers to Question 6], the 35-54 target
audience is particularly under-served by existing commercial radio services.
All existing local commercial radio stations offer music-led formats with only
minimal speech content. HLR will be a full service radio station, offering a
lively, entertaining and provocative mix of speech and music, balanced to
maximise its audience appeal without comprising any programming
element.
At present, the main spoken word programming for listeners in the area is
provided by UK-wide national radio – BBC Radio 4, BBC Radio 5 Live and
talkSPORT – and by the BBC local station, BBC Radio Humberside. While
the latter serves the city of Kingston-upon-Hull, it also covers a much wider
area and the concentration of its service to Hull is therefore diluted to some
degree. It attracts an audience primarily aged 55+, but it has been
particularly successful in delivering community radio in the widest sense and
in involving its audience in a way which none of the existing commercial
radio services in the area manage to do.
HLR will be focused precisely on the interests of Kingston-upon-Hull with a
music format carefully researched to attract the target 35-64 age group.
HLR’s appeal will, therefore, be generally broader and younger than BBC

30

Broadening Choice

Radio Humberside, while remaining sharply keyed into the attitudes, events
and affairs of the city. It will provide a meaningful community focus for the
significant local audience that prefers commercial radio.
HLR has already set up processes that ensure that research will be an
ongoing process, ensuring that the radio station is constantly in tune with
what our listeners want to hear. We will be supported in this by the efforts
of our major shareholder, the Hull Broadcasting Partnership, that will
provide the station with major guidance on broadcasting policy.
News will be a core element of our speech output. Our research confirms
the paramount importance of reliable, informative, up-to-the minute news
to the people of Hull and the East Riding. Moreover, while not ignoring the
wider regional, national and international perspective, HLR news must be
essentially local to the area. The people who live in this city have an active
interest in what happens here and, particularly, in what they perceive is
happening to them as a result of both local and more remote decision
making about the area’s future.
Through the day, news and information will provide the foundations and the
supporting structure to a programme schedule that listeners will find both
entertaining and engaging. It will be fun without being trivial, but serious
when it needs to be, balancing lightness of touch with consistent credibility
and seeking to involve people in the many and varied activities of the area
they live in.
The breakfast show will appeal to those busy and on the move, with news
and feature content clearly setting the agenda for Kingston-upon-Hull and
the East Riding. With other essential information, such as travel news,
weather, time-checks and sports updates, the show will include music,
competitions and listener involvement
The post-breakfast sequence, moving from mid-morning to lunchtime will
be more relaxed in style, but without losing the sharpness of focus on local
issues that are clearly of interest to the target audience. Listener
involvement will be key at this time of day, sitting alongside regular input
from lifestyle experts and celebrity guests.
The afternoon sequence will reflect the leisure and cultural aspects of the
area until drive-time delivers a tighter, brisker pace to the output once
more.
Evening and weekend programmes will include the opportunity for more
specialist and specific programming, with such diverse interests as sports,
arts and specialist music genres catered for.
The content of these
programmes will not be solely confined to the professional sphere but will
include the extremely active local amateur and semi-professional scene.
Sports programming will be a vital and integral part of the HLR output
covering Hull City Football Club, Hull Kingston Rovers rugby league club,
Hull FC Superleague Rugby Club, Hull Stingrays ice hockey club, as well as
news of local and junior sports clubs. We will be providing extensive and
balanced coverage of all the sports across the City that are of interest to
listeners.

31

Broadening Choice

Alongside the HLR sports coverage, Saturday and Sunday afternoon
programming will see the radio station covering major events in the area,
participating where appropriate and taking a flavour of local life to those
listening but unable to be there themselves.
On Sunday morning, the different faiths of the region will be featured on the
breakfast show as HLR reports on their many activities. Throughout the
year, through a series of carefully targeted campaigns, HLR will work with
CSV Media to prompt interest in a variety of community groups, as well as
active citizenship and civic renewal.
The HLR presenters will have excellent local knowledge and links. Some
key presenters have already been identified and, for contractual reasons,
they are named only in the confidential appendix to this document. They
will know about the issues they are discussing, with an instinctive feel for
the interests of the target audience, and they will be wholly familiar with the
music they play.
NEWS
News will play a key role in our output. It will be a core element of our
speech output. Our research confirms the paramount importance of reliable,
informative, up-to-the minute news to local people. Moreover, while not
ignoring the wider regional, national and international perspective, HLR
news must be essentially local to the City it serves. The people who live in
this area have an active interest in what happens on their doorstep, as well
as maintaining pertinent views on the wider world.
Through the day, news and information will provide the foundations and the
supporting structure to a programme schedule that listeners will find both
entertaining and engaging. It will be fun without being trivial, but serious
when it needs to be, balancing lightness of touch with consistent credibility.
Two extended news bulletins – one at lunchtime, the other during afternoon
drive time – will present a comprehensive round up of the day’s news and
allow for the considered examination of one or two major local issues.
With a necessarily tightly run staffing complement, news management will
be a vital aspect of the station’s operation. Too often, radio stations
dispense with a news story after it has been read two or three times,
without considering who has heard it and whether it should be revived for a
fresh audience later in the day. Similarly, the quick grab, sound-bite culture
that broadcast news has developed often leaves the listener with only a
hastily presented tit-bit of information, with barely any explanation or
reasoning.

32

Broadening Choice

Therefore, on HLR, one or two major stories each day will be treated
differently to others and will be the subject of an extended interview. As
well as providing shorter clips for general bulletins, the extended interview
will be featured at up to 60-seconds duration in the ten-minute extended
lunchtime bulletin and at up to 90-seconds in the fifteen-minute extended
drivetime news.
NEWS: locally presented mix of local, national & world stories
Mon – Fri
Sat
Sun
0700 3 min
3 min
0730 2 min headlines & sport
0800 5 min
3 min
3 min
0830 2 min headlines & sport
0900 3 min
3 min
3 min
0930 1 min headlines
1000 3 min
2 min
2 min
1100 3 min
2 min
2 min
1200 3 min
2 min
2 min
1300 10 min
1400 3 min
1500 3 min
1600 3 min
1700 15 min
1800 3 min
IRN national/world news hourly throughout remainder of day and night

•

broadening the range of local commercial services available in the area;

HLR will broaden choice among commercial radio stations available in
Kingston-upon-Hull and the East Riding, introducing a new independent and
committed voice to the area, mixing speech and music in a style clearly
distinct from the almost wholly music commercial services currently
available.
News and information, features and interviews, listener phone-in’s, studio
discussions and live coverage of local events will feature prominently
alongside, but will not dominate, a clearly defined music mix. HLR will be a
full service radio station that is profoundly needed to widen commercial
radio choice for the local audience.
•

the provision of local material, if any;

HLR will broadcast, to and from Kingston-upon-Hull, 24-hours a day. It will
include minimal external content from providers such as IRN.
•

the proportion of locally-made programming, if any should be set out in
this section

All HLR programming will be locally originated, other than contributions
from providers such as IRN and possible shared overnight programming in
the early hours.

33

Broadening Choice

(c)

If appropriate, the applicant may also provide a typical programme byprogramme weekday schedule, to give a flavour for the direction of the
station.
Monday-Thursday:
02.00-07.00: The Late & Early Show: music through the early hours of
the morning to see home those who have been out overnight, whether at
work or play, and to ease listeners with an early start into the day ahead.
07.00-10.00: HLR Breakfast: lively talk and the very best in music to
start the day, featuring the major stories of the day from Kingston-uponHull and district, from across the UK, and from the rest of the world. Plus
regular news and sports bulletins, travel updates and business news, as
well as weather and coastal forecasts and listener competitions. Hourly
news bulletins will be complemented by headlines on the half-hour from
07.30-09.30. Audience participation will be a key element through
competitions, phone-call’s, texts and e-mail’s.
10.00-13.00: HLR Mornings: From mid-morning to lunchtime, more
great music will link lifestyle experts, celebrity guests and input from
listener’s. Callers will be invited to have their say on the issues that
matter to them, to quiz the experts and talk to the guests. Plus regular
news, weather and travel updates and a lunchtime sports bulletin.
13.00-13.10: HLR Lunchtime News: A considered update of the day’s
news, sports and business news.
13.10-16.00: HLR in the Afternoon: The hit music continues alongside
news and information about local leisure and cultural activities and events.
16.00-19.00: HLR Drivetime: Regular travel, weather, business and
sports updates come to the fore with presenter-led features and
interviews on the day’s top news stories. Plus what’s on at the cinema and
local theatres, a guide to the area’s best restaurants and check at what’s
on TV tonight, including:
18.00-18.15: HLR Evening News: An extended bulletin of all the day’s
news, sports, business news and weather, including feature-length
interviews on the major stories.
19.00-22.00: HLR Evenings: Specialist nightly features will include
coverage of sports and arts events, as well as specialist music sequences
and live reports from meetings and events taking place in the area. Live
music by local artists will feature on certain nights, and on others
relationship issues, fears, phobias and anxieties, obsessions and
compulsions, family and sexual problems will be explored sympathetically,
with the best advice offered by the HLR team of experts and counsellors.

34

Broadening Choice

22.00-02.00: HLR Nights: Music and chat at the end of the day and across
midnight, with guest interviews, listener reaction and competitions delivered in
a relaxed but informed context.
Friday:
As Monday-Thursday, except:
18.00-19.00: HLR Sports Week: Guests from the world of sport discuss
the hot topics affecting sport in Hull and district, with listener reaction via
phone calls and text messages.

35

Broadening Choice
5. Proposed Format

A blank Format is attached at Appendix 3. Fill it in, ensuring that each of the following criteria
are addressed within, where it is felt appropriate to do so. It should follow the style of Ofcom
Formats, which can be viewed at www.ofcom.org.uk/static/radiolicensing/amfm/analogue-main.
Reasons for omission of any particular criteria (and it is accepted that not all criteria will be
relevant to all applications) should be set out separately. The Format will form part of the
licence. Therefore, questions of clarification may be asked prior to licence award and the
wording amended to reflect this, if necessary.
(a)

Station Name (working titles accepted)

(b)

Service Duration. This is the number of hours you will broadcast each day.
It should also include the number of hours of locally-made programming
(i.e. programming made within the licence area) promised. As set out in
Phase 2 of Radio – Preparing The Future, Ofcom does not believe that the
amount of automation utilised by a station is an indication of programme
quality. Therefore, Ofcom has no specific rules relating to the amount of
automation that a licensee may utilise, and applicants do not need to
include details in their proposed Format of how much live programming they
intend to provide. However, should an applicant wish to include such
information, it should be included in this part of the Format and will be
regarded as a binding commitment in the event of a licence award.

(c)

Character of Service. This is a clear, one or two sentence, description of the
output and target audience.

(d)

Detail. This should address, where appropriate:
•
•
•
•
•
•

A clear description of the type/range of music
Specialist music programmes
A level of speech content (peak/non-peak)
Any specific plans for local material
News obligations, local and national (weekdays and weekends, peaktime, non-peak, etc)
Other character-defining elements of programming

The proposed format for HLR is detailed on the next page.

36

Broadening Choice
5. Proposed Format

HLR STATION FORMAT
Licence Outline
HLR [working title]
Station Name
Licence Area
Frequency
Service Duration

Hull area (as defined in Ofcom’s Measured Coverage Area map)
24 hours a day (all locally produced/presented)

Definitions
Speech
Peaktime(s)
Daytime
Locally produced/presented

“Speech” excludes advertising, programme/promotional trails & sponsor
credits, and may be calculated across daytime on non-daytime.
“Peaktime(s)” refers to Weekday Breakfast and Afternoon Drivetime
output, and Weekend Late Breakfast.
“Daytime” refers to 0600 to 1900 weekdays, and weekend output from
0800 to 1400.
Production and presentation from within the licence area. All
requirements for locally produced/presented output must include
peaktime.

Character of Service
A GENUINELY LOCAL RADIO STATION FOR 35 TO 64 YEAR OLDS, FOCUSED ON HULL AND THE
SURROUNDING AREA, WITH SIGNIFICANT SPEECH CONTENT SUCH AS LOCAL NEWS, INTERVIEWS
AND COMMUNITY INFORMATION FORMING AN ESSENTIAL PART OF THE OUTPUT.

Details
Speech content will not fall below 30% during daytime hours, 15% outside of these times, and will
include local news, sport, community information, weather and travel news, entertainment and
what’s on information.
News will be broadcast at least hourly, including locally produced and presented news bulletins from
0700 to 1800 on weekdays, 0700 to 1200 on Saturday and 0800 to 1200 on Sunday. Regular
updates of weather, travel and what’s on information pertinent to the area will be broadcast from
0600 to 2200 every day.
Speech will feature significantly within the output, focused on issues, events and activities relevant
to Hull and the surrounding area, including studio discussions, interviews, phone-ins and short
features. Sports coverage will also play a key role in the output, with daily bulletins and sports
programmes scheduled according to the appropriate season and fixture dates.
Music will comprise a wide range of melodic popular hit songs ranging from the 60s to the present
day, combined with a significant proportion of album tracks by popular artists that integrate
seamlessly into the music mix.
During non-daytime output, specialist music programming complementing the main mix may be
scheduled.
Automation will be limited to a maximum of 0200-0700 daily, and all programming will be produced
and presented locally.

37

Section 105(D) Evidence of Local Demand Or Support
6. Evidence Of Demand

This section should provide an analysis of the reasons as to why it is considered that there is a
demand for the type of service proposed, with a reference to the size and nature of the
proposed target audience.
If original market research has been undertaken, please provide the following information for
each piece of research:
(i)
(ii)
(iii)
(iv)
(v)
(vi)
(vii)

A statement of the key objectives of the research
The specific questions that the research sought to answer
How the research was conducted
The size and composition of the sample(s)
When and where the research was conducted
A summary of the main findings from the research, showing how these
demonstrate
evidence of demand for the service proposed.
Full data tables for any quantitative research undertaken (these may be
submitted in
confidence).

Please provide your responses to (i) – (v) in tabular format.
HLR has commissioned a huge volume of independent market research
since 2003, providing the Board with substantial information on which to
base its plans for a radio station that will satisfy the needs of listeners in the
Hull and East Riding:
RESEARCH PROJECT #1
(i)

Key objectives:
•
To establish listening levels to the Hull Local Radio Restricted Service
Licence [RSL] broadcast from 30 August to 26 September 2003;
•
To determine the likelihood of listening to a new permanent radio
station.

(ii)

Specific questions asked:
•
Radio stations listened to during the last seven days;
•
Awareness of, and listening to, the RSL broadcast;
•
Appreciation of programming elements within the RSL broadcast;
•
Likelihood to listen to a permanent local radio station.

(iii)

How research conducted:
•
Quantitative research commissioned from Marketing In Practice
research specialists.

(iv)

Size and composition of sample:
•
Telephone survey of 511 adults (aged 15+) living within the RSL
transmission area, randomly selected from residential numbers;
•
Quotas applied to ensure the sample reflected the population profile
by age and sex.

38


(v)

Dates and location of research:
•
Fieldwork conducted between 22 and 26 September 2003;
•
Within the RSL transmission area.

(vi)

Summary of main findings:
•
The highest weekly reach was recorded by: Viking FM (33%), BBC
Radio Two (26%), Galaxy FM (25%), BBC Radio One (23%), BBC
Radio Humberside (19%) and BBC Radio Four (14%);
•
55% of respondents were aware of Hull Local Radio;
•
19% of respondents had listened to the Hull Local Radio trial
broadcast;
•
Of those adults who had heard the Hull Local Radio trial broadcast,
84% said the music was “very good” or good”, 84% said the news
and information was “very good” or “good”, 91% said the local
content was “very good” or “good”, and 73% said the music/speech
mix was “very good” or “good;
•
75% of respondents said they would be “very likely” or “likely” to
listen to a permanent version of the Hull Local Radio trial broadcast.

(vii)

Full data tables
•
Full research report submitted as Appendix 8
RESEARCH PROJECT #2

(i)

Key objectives:
•
To establish listening levels to the Hull Local Radio Restricted Service
Licence [RSL] broadcast from 20 to 30 September 2005;
•
To determine the likelihood of listening to a new permanent radio
station.

(ii)

•
Radio stations listened to during the last seven days;
•
Awareness of, and listening to, the RSL broadcast;
•
Appreciation of programming elements within the RSL broadcast;
•
Likelihood to listen to a permanent local radio station.

(iii)

•
Quantitative research commissioned from Keith Gorton Services

(iv)

•
Telephone survey of 304 adults (aged 25+) living within the RSL
transmission area, randomly selected from residential numbers;
•
by age and sex.

(v)

•
Fieldwork conducted between 29 September and 7 October 2005;
•
Within the RSL transmission area.

39


(vi)

•
48% of respondents used the Hull Daily Mail newspaper as their
primary source of local information;
•
Asked which music eras they would like to hear on the radio, 82%
were “very interested” or “Interested” in hits from the 1970s, 75%
in hits from the 1960s, and 74% in hits from the 1960s;
•
Asked which speech content they would like to hear on the radio,
80% were “very interested” or “interested” in hourly local news
during the day, 78% in regular local weather reports, 76% in regular
local what’s on information, and 74% in regular local travel
information;
•
The highest weekly reach was recorded by: BBC Radio Humberside
(47%), Viking FM (44%), Galaxy FM (24%), BBC Radio Two (21%),
Magic 1661 (18%) and BBC Radio Four (15%);
•
21% of respondents were aware of Hull Local Radio;
•
11% of respondents had listened to Hull Local Radio;
•
Of those respondents who had listened to Hull Local Radio, 72% said
the music was “very good” or “good”, 71% said the presenters were
“very good” or “good”, 67% said the local content was “very good”
or “good”, and 62% said the local news and information was “very
good” or “good”;
•
Offered a description of a new radio station specifically for Hull with:
o Well known hit songs from the 1960’s to the present day
o Presenters who know and understand the area
o Hourly local news bulletins during the daytime
o Regular local weather, travel, entertainment, sport and
what’s on information
o Community information and daily interviews or features on
local people, local issues and local events
o Regular
coverage
of
local
charities,
community
organisations and local cultural events.
56% of respondents said they would be “very likely” or “likely” to
listen;
•
33% of respondents who said they would listen to the new radio
station explained that its format appealed to them because they
were interested in local issues;
•
Of those respondents who said they would listen to the new station,
55% said they would listen to the radio longer, while 41% said they
would listen less to existing stations in order to make time for the
newcomer;
•
Of those respondents who said they would spend less time listening
to existing stations, 37% said BBC Radio Humberside, 32% said
Viking FM, 11% said BBC Radio Two and 9% said Magic 1161.

(vii)

Full data tables
•

40

RESEARCH PROJECT #3
(i)

Key objectives:
•
To analyse radio listening habits within the Hull market over the last
six years.

(ii)

•
Analysis of RAJAR data from 1999 to 2005 for stations audible within
the Hull radio market.

(iii)

•
Quantitative research commissioned
International research specialists.

from

Radio

Development

(iv)

•
RAJAR data from six consecutive annual sample points – Quarter 3
in 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2005.

(v)

•
December 2005;
•
Desk research.

(vi)

•
Trends from 1999 to 2005 [data indexed for population and TSA
changes] within the Viking FM TSA:
•
Radio listening has remained relatively static (91% reach);
•
Commercial radio’s share of listening has fallen from 51% to 42%
since 1999;
•
Viking FM’s share of listening has fallen from 18% to 9% since 1999;
•
Magic 1161’s share of listening has fallen from 5% to 3% since
1999;
•
Galaxy Yorkshire’s share has risen from 5% to 8% since 1999;
•
Viking FM ranks fifth in the market, while Magic 1161 ranks ninth;
•
The top ranked four stations are all BBC.

(vii)

Full data tables
•
RESEARCH PROJECT #4

(i)

Key objectives:
•
To determine the interest amongst the potential audience for a new
local radio station for Hull;
•
To determine potential listeners’ preferences for the new permanent
radio station, including music content, presenter styles and features;
•
To determine the propensity to listen to a new local radio station.

(ii)

•
Current radio listening habits;
•
Perceptions of existing local commercial radio stations;
•
Perceptions of “localness”;
•
Descriptions of the “perfect” radio station;
•
Preferences for news coverage;
•
Preferences for traffic and travel information;

41

•
•
•
•

Preferences for music formats (with samples played of three
different music stations);
Preferences for presenter styles;
Preferences for features;
Likelihood to listen to a new local radio station of this specific
description:
A local radio station focused specifically on Hull and the
surrounding area with:
• A wide variety of quality songs from the 1960s to the
present day, mixing well-known hits with album tracks by
popular artists.
• Presenters who know and understand the area.
• Hourly local news bulletins during the daytime.
• Regular local weather, travel, entertainment, sport and
• Community information, daily interviews or features on local
people, local issues and local events.
• Regular
coverage
of
local
charities,
community

(iii)

•
Qualitative research commissioned from Keith Gorton Services

(iv)

•
Two focus groups:
o the first group comprised 10 adults aged 25 to 35 who lived
in Hull;
o the second group comprised 10 adults aged 45 to 64 who
lived in Hull.

(v)

•
The evening of 17 January 2006;
•
The Cornmill Hotel, Hull.

(vi)

•
Participants wanted more local what’s on information on local radio;
•
The Hull Daily Mail newspaper was the most commonly used source
of information;
•
Repetitive music and irritating presenters were turning people away
from local stations such as Viking FM;
•
Respondents (particularly older ones) tended to listen more to BBC
Radio Humberside because they valued the local information, even
though younger listeners thought the station’s presentation style
was rather old fashioned;
•
Respondents wanted a radio station to be “upbeat, fun and
energetic” with listener interaction and lots of local information and
news;
Respondents wanted the station’s music policy to cover songs from
•
the 1960s to today, including less commercial music;
•
Reaction to the station description was extremely positive from
respondents of all ages in both groups.

42


(vii)

Full data tables
•
RESEARCH PROJECT #5

(i)

Key objectives:
•
To ascertain existing radio listening habits;
•
To examine perceptions of existing local radio stations;
•
To determine the importance of various programmes and features
for a new local radio station;
•
Likelihood to listen to a new local radio station of a specific given
description;
•
To determine the impact of this new local radio station on listening
to existing stations.

(ii)

•
Sources of local information;
•
Favourite station and weekly reach;
•
Strengths and weaknesses of competing radio stations;
•
Importance of different speech features and music genres;
•
Likelihood to listen to a new local radio station of this specific
description:
A local radio station focused specifically on Hull and the
surrounding area with:
• A wide variety of quality songs from the 1960s to the
present day, mixing well-known hits with album tracks by
popular artists.
• Presenters who know and understand the area.
• Hourly local news bulletins during the daytime.
• Regular local weather, travel, entertainment, sport and
• Community information, daily interviews or features on local
people, local issues and local events.
• Regular
coverage
of
local
charities,
community
•
Stations likely to attract less listening to make time for new radio
station.

(iii)

•

(iv)

•
Telephone survey of 510 adults (aged 25+) living within the
proposed station’s survey area who listened to the radio for at least
30 minutes per day, randomly selected for telephone interviews.
•
by age and sex.

43


(v)

•
Fieldwork conducted from 14 December 2005 to 13 January 2006;
•
Sample restricted to respondents within the station’s survey area.

(vi)

•
Asked their main source of information to find out what is going on
in their area, 61% cited local newspapers, compared to 56% for
local radio;
•
The Hull Daily Mail was the most popular newspaper source of
information (69%) and BBC Radio Humberside was the most popular
radio source (55%);
•
The highest weekly reach was recorded by: BBC Radio Humberside
(48%), Viking FM (42%), BBC Radio Two (24%), Galaxy 105 (22%)
and BBC Radio One (16%) in prompted recall;
•
BBC Radio Humberside was liked most for its local news and
features, while Viking FM was liked most for its music;
•
32% of respondents said they listened to both Viking FM and Magic
1161 less now than they did a year ago;
•
91% of respondents said that local news would be “very important”
or “important” for a new local radio station;
•
88% of respondents said that local weather reports would be “very
important” or “important” for a new local radio station;
•
87% of respondents said that local travel news would be “very
important” or “important” for a new local radio station;
•
86% of respondents said that local what’s on information would be
“very important” or “important” for a new local radio station;
•
73% of respondents said that discussion programmes would be
“very important” or “important” for a new local radio station;
•
73% of respondents said that they would be “very likely” or “likely”
to listen to a new local radio station playing easy listening music;
•
to listen to a new local radio station playing album tracks by popular
artists;
•
to listen to a new local radio station playing songs from the 1970s;
•
•
•
71% of respondents “strongly agreed” or “agreed” that some local
radio stations’ music policy is repetitive;
•
62% of respondents “strongly agreed” or “agreed” that it would good
if local radio stations played album tracks and not just chart hits;
70% of respondents said that it was “very likely” or “likely” that
•
would listen to a new local radio station of the given description;
•
To make time to listen to the new station, 46% of respondents
would listen to the radio for longer, while 54% would listen less to
existing radio stations;
•
The stations that would be listened to less were BBC Radio
Humberside (37%), Viking FM (28%), BBC Radio Two (12%) and
Galaxy 105 (10%).

44


(vii)

Full data tables
•
RESEARCH PROJECT #6

(i)

Key objectives:
•
To analyse the music content of existing local commercial radio
stations audible in the Hull market.

(ii)

•
Analysis of output of Viking FM, Magic 1161 and Galaxy Yorkshire.

(iii)

•

(iv)

•
The output of the relevant stations on five consecutive weekdays
0700 to 1900 in January 2006.

(v)

•
January 2006;
•
Desk research.

(vi)

•
Viking FM daytime output:
o 359 different songs in 637 total plays;
o 0% from 1960s, 2% from 1970s, 18% from 1980s, 23%
from 1990s, 20% from 2000s and 37% from 2005/6;
o most played songs: Kelly Clarkson “Because Of You” (16
times), KT Tunstall “Suddenly I See” (15 times), Shayne
Ward “That’s My Goal” (15 times), Robbie Williams
“Advertising Space” (14 plays) and Coldplay “Talk” (13
plays);
o most played artists: Robbie Williams (22 plays), Kelly
Clarkson (17 plays), Sugarbabes (17 plays), Texas (16
plays) and Coldplay (15 plays);
o 10 most-played artists account for 24% of all songs played;
•
Magic AM daytime output:
o 524 different songs in 662 total plays;
o 21% from 1960s, 27% from 1970s, 37% from 1980s, 7%
from 1990s, 2% from 2000s and 5% from 2005/6;
o most played songs: Daniel Powter “Bad Day” (6 plays),
James Blunt “High” (4 plays), Michael Buble “Home” (4
plays), Police “Don’t Stand So Close To Me” (4 plays) and
Rolling Stones “Rain Fell Down” (4 plays);
o most played artists: Beatles (24 plays), Rolling Stones (10
plays), Diana Ross (9 plays), Police (9 plays) and James
Blunt (8 plays);
o 10 most-played artists account for 15% of all songs played.

(vii)

Full data tables
•

45

7. Evidence Of Support

RESEARCH PROJECT #7
(i)

Key objectives:
•
To determine the propensity of local businesses to advertise on the
new local radio station.

(ii)

•
Which media does the business currently use for advertising;
•
How much does the business spend annually on advertising;
•
Which advertising medium is found to be most productive and cost
effective;
•
How interested is the business in advertising on a new local radio
station;
•
Is the cost of an advertising campaign on the new station considered
reasonable.

(iii)

•
Qualitative and quantitative research commissioned from Keith
Gorton Services research specialists.

(iv)

•
30 face-to-face interviews and 71 telephone interviews with
businesses located within the station’s transmission area, specifically
with executives responsible for advertising and marketing decisions
within each company.

(v)

•
10 January to 5 February 2006;
•
Within station’s transmission area.

(vi)

•
The majority of the sample advertised in Yellow Pages and around
half used classified or display advertising in local advertisers or
direct mail;
•
One fifth of the sample had advertised on local radio;
•
The majority of businesses who had not advertised on the radio were
put off by the perceived cost;
•
62% of the sample welcomed a new radio station for Hull;
•
48% of the sample said they would be likely to advertise on a new
local radio station;
•
99% of respondents believed that a new local radio station would
increase the choices available to local advertisers;
•
97% of the businesses interested in radio advertising said the £60
cost of a commercial was acceptable to some degree;
•
Over four-fifths of the businesses who were interested in local radio
advertising reported that the £440 per week cost of an advertising
campaign was acceptable to some degree;
•
Three quarters of the sample wanted to see the new local radio
station controlled by a local company.

(vii)

Full data tables
•

46

7. Evidence Of Support

This section should provide evidence of support, where appropriate, from the applicant’s
potential audience or from prospective local advertisers.
Public consultation has been taking place since the first RSL in September
2003. Feedback has shaped two subsequent RSLs, with the last one in late
September 2005 being advertised prominently in the local press, with a full
colour page in the weekly entertainment supplement of the Hull Daily Mail
and East Riding Mail, to encourage public feedback and participation in
formal research.
From late August 2005 to early March 2006 Hull Local Radio has been
gathering support for its proposals by consulting with the key decision
makers and opinion formers representing the local community in the public,
private and voluntary sectors in the Hull and East Yorkshire area. Opinions
were sought on gaps and shortcomings of existing commercial radio and
media services; how HLR proposes to fill such gaps and improve upon the
current provision; and any specific programming content or policy
suggestions.
The consultations took the form of bespoke individual meetings consisting of
a brief explanatory presentation followed by questions and then discussion
around the above points. Without exception, all those consulted were
enthusiastic for a radio station that could focus on local issues, information
and entertainment. They were especially supportive of a radio style that
creates a positive voice for local people at a time of great change.
PUBLIC SECTOR
HLR met with both Hull City Council and East Riding of Yorkshire Council
cabinets and senior officers, including their chief executives and political
leaders.
Hull City Council emphasised that they are managing a significant period of
change within Hull, undergoing consultation and making plans to improve
such areas as education, health, public safety, housing and the wider
regeneration of the City. A combination of public and private sector
investment in the City is expected to reach around £500 million per annum
over the next five years – a period of ‘profound’ change which will see the
city resemble a ‘building site’ over the next five to seven years. (See Hull’s
public sector regeneration web site www.hull.co.uk)
“Communication with the public is going to be a vital component of
managing change and expectation over the next few years,” Chief Executive
Kim Ryley told us. Radio is seen as an important medium. The ability to
deliver a focused message to a local audience will be vital.
Cllr Kath Lavery, Cabinet Portfolio Holder for Regeneration and Renewal and
Chair of the Local Strategic Partnership – Cityvision, said she hoped the new
radio service would: “Encourage more positive attitudes to such aspects of
local life as learning, health and the ‘respect’ agenda through creative and
entertaining features, short information spots, case studies, quizzes and
competitions. Informing the public on progress in regeneration and other
Council programmes; stimulating public participation in delivering change.”

47

'An Application To Ofcom For The FM Independent Local Radio Licence For Hull By Hull Local Radio' by Grant Goddard

'An Application To Ofcom For The FM Independent Local Radio Licence For Hull By Hull Local Radio' by Grant Goddard

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