Ofcom is currently consulting on their work plan for next year, and whilst they mention SSDAB and followig our lobbying last year have said they will consider the next steps for radio in the UK following the completition of SSDAB there is still no concrete promise they will start licencing new FM community radio stations this year, or any roadmap to when that might happen.

https://www.ofcom.org.uk/about-ofcom/annual-reports-and-plans/consultation-ofcoms-plan-of-work-202627

This cannot be the best approach to serve local communities - whilst SSDAB is an opportunity for Community Radio, it won't be viable in all areas, audiences might not quite be ready for it, and it may also take many years until all areas of the UK are given the opportunity to apply to run or be on an SSDAB Mux.

We want to call on Ofcom to commit to new community radio FM licences, and release a timeline and plan for that implementation now so that stations and communities can plan for the future.

There are many internet-based community radio stations and even more that have been started since COVID19, and since many parts of the UK saw their local station close down following the Bauer Radio changes.

We want to encourage stations to consider making representations to Ofcom to show interest in additional FM licensing, and also encourage stations to contact their local Councils, Mayors, MP's and other key stakeholders to encourage them to engage with the Ofcom process to push for a commitment for additional FM licenses alongside SSDAB.

The deadline to submit your own submission is 5pm on the 5th of February.

We are happy to help and would love to look at a coordinated approach to working with Ofcom on this matter.

Below is a questionnaire to gauge interest in future FM licenses and for us to look at coordination on approach and responses. - This should be completed by the station manager or management group/committee etc representative.

We also want your thoughts on if there are other points that are relevant to Ofcoms Plan of work that we should be presenting to Ofcom.

We will be submitting a response to Ofcom and making representations based on the feedback from this survey and engagement with stations.

UK Community Radio Network
[email protected]