It’s been nearly a year since we contacted our supporters and for that we apologise. However I think that many of you will have seen or heard our forays in the press and on the radio.  And we certainly haven’t been inactive.  In fact the amount of lobbying we’ve been doing is our excuse for not being in touch for so long.    

What’s Been Occuring…

Working with our allies in PACT, the VLV and the entertainment unions, we were in contact with politicians of all three main parties during the run-up to the election.  Meetings with Shadow Broadcasting Minister Ed Vaizey produced clarity, though not much support for our campaign to create a funded solution to the crisis in kids’ content provision.  The Lib-Dems were supportive but pessimistic that additional money could be found at a time of financial constraint.  After various submissions over the last 12 months to the DCMS as part of the “Digital Britain” process, it became apparent that while there was clear understanding of the issues amongst government officials and politicians, in the end very little appeared in the Digital Economy Bill.  The most it could muster for kids was a reference to extending Channel 4’s remit to address the 10+ audience but with no extra money from public funds.

However at our meeting with the then Culture Secretary, Ben Bradshaw, a small chink of light appeared.  Bradshaw was busy trying to get the Digtal Economy Bill through Parliament before the election was called, and he was hoping for support for the Labour proposal that money from the TV Licence Fee should be used to fund regional news programmes on commercial TV.  This was to start as a pilot in a couple of regions, and then be extended.  The pilot would be funded from money left-over from an add-on to the licence fee which was intended to give assistance for disadvantaged groups, like the elderly, to make the switch to digital TV.  Take-up had been low and the uderspend was planned to finance the proposed pilot.  Thereafter the idea was to maintain the additional element in the Licence Fee rather than reducing it after digital switchover (which was the original plan) there would be a continuing stream of extra funds available, some of which could be used to pay for regional news programming across the country.  

Note the word “some”.  At his meeting with us, Bradshaw made it clear that his next priority for this “digital dividend” would be additional funding for children’s programmes.  This is of course what Save Kids’ TV has been advocating for the last two years – a funded public service alternative, providing plurality, healthy competition for the BBC, and greater range, variety and choice for our kids. 

However, as soon as the election was called, the Digital Economy Bill disappeared into the political haggling called the “washup”, which allows certain parts of legislation to be nodded through if the opposition parties agree.  And the Tories did not agree with the regional news pilot proposals.  So they died.  And along with them the glimmer of hope for a funded solution.

What next?

So now we start afresh with new ministers and a renewed vigour. We need to get them to not only agree that there is a problem - that our kids are facing diminished choice and are in danger of being marginalised in their own media, (which most politicians understand now) but also to decide to do something about it (whch most are reluctant about).   We will work with our campaign allies at the Party Conferences, and lobby the DCMS directly.  The new Culture Secretary, Jeremy Hunt, has professed a strong interest in the fortunes of the creative industries.  We need to capitalise on that and persuade him that these industries need support if we are to maintain a healthy media diet for our kids. 

We’re also lobbying for the creation of a new Parliamentary cross-party group dedicated to children’s media.  We are looking for sympathetic MPs and Lords from across the political specturm to help form this.  If you feel you could help the campaign, now would be a good time to write to your new MP to ask where they stand on the question of providing additional funds for better public service media provision for kids.  You could send them theSave Kids’ TV proposal and ask them to back calls for the all-party group.  

We’ll try to keep you informed – and we are welcoming volunteers to join us in these activites.  Please contact our Secretary, Greg Childs on admin@:savekidstv.org.uk if you think you can help in any way – contacts, experience in lobbying, or more general help with running the organisation – all would be more than welcome.

The Conference theme this year is: “ New decade, new challenges.  How can children’s media make a positive impact on the lives of UK kids?”  There are sessions planned on how education and content production can be brought closer, and on the big issues facing children’s media today – the over-commercialisation of childhood, the lack of public funding for kids’ content and the future of children as performers in, and contributors to, their own programmes.  All the key figures from the UK kids’ media scene will attend.

Early Bird registration ends on the 18th May – so book soon for the best value.

However there is a downside.  The closure of the Switch service for teens is not something we would wish to see happen and the actual money being re-prioritised into BBC Children’s is only £10m.  It might seem like a lot but it doesn’t go far to produce high-end drama and factual programmes, without producers still needing to resortt to co-production for additional finance, which inevitably means a dilution of the UK content.  And when you realise that the amount of money being released by the entire Strategy Review could be as much as £600m a year – then £10m is a derisory figure (less than 2%).

The BBC Trust is currently consulting on the proposals so you can have your say. The consultation closes on the 25th May.  SKTV has written an open letter to Michael Lyons, the Trust Chair, pointing out that once again kids are being short-changed.  This is available for download from the Save Kids’ TV website.  We will also follow up with a full response to the consultation.

We have had several meetings with senior civil servants and advisors to the Digital Britain Review process which resulted in their request that we submit a more detailed version of the SKTV “digital destination” plan – the online video-on-demand and interactive community for kids delivering the best of UK, world and user content and letting kids, play chat and contribute around it.  The latest version of the plan is downloadable here.

SKTV made representations to the House of Commons Select Committee on Culture Media and Sport, and sent a full report to the House of Lords Select Committee’s investigation in to the future of the creative industries chaired by Lord Foster.

Key supporters have also been coming forward, including Floella Benjamin who is tireless activist for children’s rights, especially to media access, and Lord Puttnam the Labour peer and advocate for digital education.

Throughout this process we have remained pragmatic – insisting that if the SKTV plan is not adopted it’s general principles should be applied to any solution for the Second Public Service Broadcaster and their commitment to kids’ content.

SKTV supports the PACT campaign, as this is the perfect time to let Burnham and Carter know how important it is not let the kids’ issue take a back seat in the Digital Britain Report.  You can join Uncle Bulgaria really easily at www.britishkidstv.com and follow the campaign on Twitter  https://twitter.com/  -  search for @gtuncbulgaria.

However, we remain concerned that an apparent emphasis on technology and distribution will mean that children’s content is not high on the agenda. It is also likely that kids’ issues will rank behind news and regional news. We await the report with interest…

On the public service broadcasting front, it looks as if there will be a deal for Channel 4, perhaps along the lines of a C4/BBC joint venture.

Again, SKTV has been lobbying hard, reinforcing our view that whatever happens there should be an alternative kid’s service to the BBC. This service should be clearly mandated to cater for all age groups, have sufficient funding and broadcast hours. It should be properly regulated to ensure that it delivers on its mandate. Our view is, and has always been, that a service for 10 pluses provided by channel 4 on an ad hoc basis is not enough.

SKTV has been encouraged to develop and represent our unique proposal for an alternative model of public service content for children. We have refined and enhanced our proposal and submitted it to the DCMS. We have already received support from a number of quarters, and we hope that the model will be taken into consideration as future models are developed.

This is probably the last opportunity we have to make our voices heard, and we encourage SKTV supporters to take any opportunity to raise the issue of children’s media content with politicians and opinion formers.

Following are some key points from the BBC Trust’s review of children’s services:
Although CBeebies is perceived to be performing very well there is a recommendation that its Service licence should be amended to include a commitment to the BBC’s global public purpose (Recommendation 1)

CBBC on television is reaching a large audience. However, reach has declined since the scheduling changes made as a result of the loss of Neighbours, and there is particular concern regarding Blue Peter and Newsround audiences. The Trust is concerned about this and has asked the BBC Executive to develop plans to address this decline and report to the Trust by the summer of 2009. (Recommendation 3)

NB The Trust does not have the power to demand scheduling changes. However they do say that ‘Scheduling decisions which are likely to impact on children’s output should prioritise children’s content unless there is a strong public value reason for not doing so’

The CBBC web site is losing users and the report states that ‘the executive should develop plans to address this decline.’( Recommendation 4)

The Executive has proposed extending hours on the CBBC channel from 7 to 9 PM. This is something that SKTV also supported. The Trust ‘recognises the potential benefits’ of such an extension, but said this will have to be considered alongside other proposals as part of the wider digital terrestrial spectrum review. (Recommendation 6)

The Trust also comments on the BBC’s “Fewer Bigger Better” strategy, commenting that taken too far, this could begin to have a negative impact on performance. They note that this has already led to an increase in repeats, and has led to complaints from viewers. “Commissioning fewer…programmes at a time when other PSB broadcasters are retreating from children’s content could, if taken too far limit the range of programmes available to children…’ say the Trust. This a concern SKTV raised with the Trust and we feel that this has already become an issue.

The report also highlights the decline in audiences to programmes which make an important contribution to the BBC’s citizenship and global purposes, notably Blue Peter and Newsround (this is in the context of the re scheduling  mentioned above). The executive is asked to develop plans to address boosting these audiences. (Recommendation 8 )

Value for money
The Trust believes that there is  a lack of clarity about the real spend on children’s programmes due to the current system of allocating programme costs. This means that certain programmes are allocated to channel budgets rather than CBBC or CBeebies budgets. This makes it impossible to see what the real children’s budget is and whether it is appropriate or delivering value for money.

The Trust has proposed amending the Service Licences to include all CBBC and CBeebies expenditure on television programmes including those first broadcast on BBC1  or BBC2. (Recommendation 9)

The Trust expresses real concern about the content and reach of children’s radio and asks the Executive for an alternative approach. (Recommendation 11)

Future Direction
The report lists the following factors, which need to be monitored:
- Risks and Uncertainties associated with the Executive’s investment plans over the period of the licence fee
- Efficiency savings
- “Fewer Bigger Better”
- Commercial income forecasts
- The move to Salford
- Wider industry developments

In their final recommendation they say ‘The Trust believes that the BBC must remain a corner stone of high quality UK produced children’s content. However the Executive has not yet determined what level of performance is required to meet this aim. For planning purposes the Executive should be clearer about the performance objectives for children’s provision and consider whether the existing budget is sufficient to meet these objectives taking into account the risks and uncertainties surrounding the current budget’

This is a very brief digest of a very detailed report. It can be read in full at here. SKTV welcomes the BBC Trust Report, which we believe is a fair representation of the status quo and looks forward to hearing the response from the Executive. We look for clear action, guaranteed commitment in terms of both hours, spend, and expect the Trust to ensure this.

This relatively new ministry under Secretary of State, Ed Balls, has responsibility for pretty much everything associated with the lives of children, so SKTV identified lobbying here as vital to gain government support for the Campaign.  SKTV Executive member Katy Jones made the issues clear to senior civil servants and Floella Benjamin, who has been tirelessly working independently for the cause, met the Minister and his senior team, to impress on them what would be lost when all public service content outside the BBC disappears.  Subsequently Save Kids’ TV drew together these two approaches and held a full briefing meeting with a key ministerial advisor.  The issues were dissected in detail, and the key point SKTV made was that the Ministry is hugely concerned with the care we afford our children, and that is precisely the position we take on the demise of quality indigenous media for kids.  It’s a failure of care.  We are failing to give them the care which is their right.  We are failing to engage them as citizens and failing to empower them as individuals if we distance their media from their experience.

We pointed out that the £35 million required to support a public service alternative for kids was a small sum compared to the overall education budget – but the money for new programmes,  widely disseminated and powerfully engaging, would be extremely well spent as an educational resource.  It could do more to re-connect kids to the society in which they live than a hundred government schemes and initiatives.

We have asked the DCSF to support public funding for new children’s content and to communicate this to the DCMS where the final decisions on the future of public service content will be taken.

SKTV Executive member Jayne Kirkham asks Lord Carter about children’s provision.

At the Westminster eForum held on 14th January 2009, policy makers from Parliament and Whitehall, professionals and stakeholders from the IT and telecoms industries met to discuss Lord Stephen Carter’s ongoing Digital Britain Report. Having heard Lord Carter state the importance of News in a healthy democracy, where a plurality of opinion can engage and include all, SKTV Executive member Jayne Kirkham wrote to him stressing that Children’s content is equally important and for the very same reasons.

Lord Carter wrote back agreeing that UK originated children’s television programming, which reflects a range of different cultures and views and which helps children learn about society, plays a much valued and important role. He welcomed the commitment of the BBC digital channels in this respect, but agreed that this is an area where plurality matters and should be preserved.  So much so that the Digital Britain Report committee has identified children’s content as one of its priorities, that will be addressed by the new framework for public service content it wants to design. Lord Carter agreed that this should include content both transmitted on television and on new media platforms. He therefore welcomed the offer to meet and discuss our proposal.

This is a tremendous opportunity for Save Kids’ TV to make a difference to the future provision of children’s public service content.  At the Westminster eForum, Lord Carter stated that his report would not be ‘just another review’ but a chance to look at a real cultural turning point, with the rare opportunity to change the framework. SKTV is keen to do just that.