Council advice to the Â鶹Éç Trust cont.

Â鶹Éç services for younger audiences (December 2008)

There was awareness and appreciation of core Â鶹Éç values among younger audiences, even where they were not high consumers. There was demand for material that was more relevant to younger audiences, such as music, comedy, and documentaries on issues of concern to them, and more content which reflected contemporary Scotland. The Â鶹Éç should offer positive, culturally specific role models for young people in Scotland. There was some demand for a stronger local identity for the Â鶹Éç in Scotland, although some young people felt channel identity was less important for them. We noted the popularity of the Â鶹Éç iPlayer among younger members of the audience.

Â鶹Éç Local Video proposal

We supported the Trust’s view that provision of additional resources for existing bulletins, and regional radio or television opts in the devolved nations, could address gaps in the news portfolio. Our own engagement activity in Moray and Ayrshire indicated clear audience demand for Â鶹Éç content reflecting local interests and concerns.

Members noted that audience perceptions of under-provision in Scotland, identified in Trust research, remained more acute than in any other UK nation. We concluded that the Â鶹Éç’s national Scottish news and non-news content should be strengthened, and the provision of regional news developed, to create a comprehensive news service appropriate for a devolved nation. The rejection of the Local Video proposal in its original form meant that the issue of the provision of regional/local news for Scotland from the Â鶹Éç, identified in the 2003 news review, had still to be addressed.