In February of next year, UNESCO will celebrate the power of sports broadcasting as the theme for their next World Radio Day and for the community radio sector, this couldn’t be more relevant.

When it comes to celebrating diversity, gender equality, peace and promoting access to information, who is at the front of the queue? From boxercise to yoga, cycling Sundays to walking football, the community sector has been championing the opportunities that exist for everyone, not just the elite.

My time on community radio was spent with Somer Valley FM, showcasing local sports clubs for the benefit of the local community. Clubs that were rarely, if ever, fortunate enough to be covered by the established media; yet whose history, achievements, and ethos made their members and supporters as proud of them, as any supporter of any Premier League football team in the country.

I used our connections with the Clubs, to build an audience for the show and the radio station. Our commentaries and outside broadcasts were designed to take this engagement to another level. But there is no point building an audience if you can’t keep it and ultimately grow it. That should be the true measure of success for any broadcaster.

Community radio is no different, and whilst I may have hit upon a formula that worked in the short term, longer term success can only be achieved through improving the quality of production and the diversity of content. In short, never taking the listener for granted.

Today, I podcast for the Western Football League, a facility the leagues’ fans, players and managers, appear to enjoy. I’ve used my community radio background to share our content with radio stations around the Western League area. I’d love to say I do this out of the kindness of my own heart, but I do it to raise the profile of the podcast, the league and our member clubs. If I can engage a community station with their local football club, then I might have encouraged a few more supporters through the gate and put a few extra pounds in the till.

In my experience, grassroots Clubs, whatever the sport, aren’t in it for the money; indeed, many struggle to break even, even on a match day. The reality is, that they are community hubs, also running teams for people with a disability and countless teams for children and young people. All organised by volunteers – and these are the people we should celebrate.

So whether it’s yoga, football, cricket, boxing or rugby, World Radio Day provides a wonderful opportunity for community radio to celebrate ‘its’ people; the unsung heroes in every town, village and city who make a difference, every day of the week. These are the people that give, not for the image rights, appearance fees or win bonuses, but because they want to make a difference.

To keep up to date with UNESCO’s plans for the next World Radio Day, visit their dedicated Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/WorldRadioDay/

Ian Nockolds