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TRANSCRIPT
Page 1
Issue 146
MAY 2015
Conference &
Conference &
Conference &
Awards Special
Awards Special
Awards Special
On AiR
HOSPITAL BROADCASTING ASSOCIATION
Page 3
In this issue
4 - The Awards
5 - Station of the Year
6 - Male Presenter of the Year
7 - Female Presenter of the Year
8 - Special Event
9 - Best Speech Package
10 - Best Newcomer
12 - Best Specialist Music
13 - Best Programme with Multiple
Presenters
14 - Station Promotion
15 - The John Whitney Award
15 - Fundraiser of the Year
16 - Conference Report
20 - Conference Photo Gallery
22 - Dementia Friends
24 - Hospital Radio in the Future
26 - Northumberland HR Visit
26 - Radio Tyneside Visit
Front cover: David ‘Kid’ Jensen
was the mystery guest in “An
evening with…..” on the Friday to
get the conference off with a
bang!
Welcome to the HBA awards 2015
Issue of On Air. We hope to
produce an electronic version of
the magazine on fairly regular
basis, so any contributions for the
next issue should be sent
In this issue the pages are
interactive so that you can click on
the adverts to be taken to their
website, or if you see a speaker
symbol that is pointing to an
audio clip.
If you are interest in helping with
the next issue please contact us at
[email protected]. We are looking
forward to hearing from you as we
are putting a new team together
to produce future editions.
Editor: Mike Sarre
Thanks to all the sponsors
ActiveIT, AEQ, Broadcast Bionics,
P Squared, PPL, Smile!, Sonifex &
Vortex
Journal of the
Hospital Broadcasting Association
The Hospital Broadcasting Association(HBA) is the operating name of the National Association of Hospital Broadcast-
ing Organisations, Registered in England and Wales as a company limited by guarantee (No. 2750147) and a charity
(No. 1015501). Registered office: Avebury House, St Peter Street, Winchester, SO23 8BN
All material ©2015 HBA and may not be reproduced in any form without prior written permission. Views expressed
in this magazine are the personal opinion of the contributor, and not necessarily those of the HBA or the editors.
Whilst every effort has been taken to ensure the accuracy of the publication, all advertisements and articles are
included in good faith and HBA accepts no responsibility for any errors or omissions.
On AiR
Issue 146 Conference & Awards Issue
NHS
Page 4
National Hospital Radio
Awards 2015
Newcastle Marriott Hotel, Gosforth Park
The Awards were attended by Hospital
Broadcasters from across the country
who came together to celebrate suc-
cess in Hospital Radio.
The aim of the National Hospital Radio
Awards is to promote high standards
within hospital broadcasting. The
awards winners on the night are just the tip of the iceberg, their work
is mirrored up and down the country by thousands of volunteers on a
daily basis. The judges consistently remarked that the standard heard
within the entries is as high as they hear in other industry awards.
Why are the awards important? They are an opportunity to raise your
station profile. In an age where it is difficult to attract publicity from
a diminishing local media, being shortlisted for, or winning an award
will usually secure an article or an interview. It gives you
reinforcement, in an age where some question the relevance of hospi-
tal radio, that it is still a sector that is worthy of support.
This year the head of the NHS in England recorded a supportive
message, along with other well known broadcasters.
As you may be aware, the HBA are looking for successors to Sean
and Iain as organisers of the awards. There has been some interest
shown, but we are still looking for people to come forward if they
would like to be considered. Ideally you will need a team that
encompasses good organisational skills to organise the competition,
but also contacts to secure judges, and someone with the creative
ability to put on a show. Interested? Find out more by e-mailing Iain.
Congratulations to all of ‘this year’s winners’, and don’t forget to
start saving your best audio clips now ready for putting your entries
together later in the year.
Event Organisers Sean Dunderdale,
Grant McNaughton & Iain Lee
Page 5
“Very professional - a real
showcase. A true reflection.
We loved the interaction at
local events. A great range of
speech shows, OBs and
specialist music. Packed a
lot in, and it was good to hear
so much content which relates
directly to the hospital."
"Excellent quality of speech program-
ming - both in terms of the content and
also the way that it is handled. Some of
this is of the same quality as you hear
on BBC local radio. We liked the hospi-
tal awards section."
Station of the Year
"Nice use of interviews, and getting out into
the local community. A good balance of con-
tent in the entry. We particularly liked some
of the health elements - men's health week,
and cancer awareness month. Strong speech
content."
Silver
Radio Brockley
Gold
Hospital Radio Plymouth
Bronze
Radio Glamorgan
Page 6
"Rhodri loved being there -
infectious, funny, interesting
and engaging. There's no
doubt he will cheer-up
patients!"
"Just a great presenter; interesting,
engaging with patients, fun and friendly
from the start."
Male Presenter of the Year
"Rajiv has a caring style - warm and
friendly. Sounds like he could work for the
BBC!"
Bronze
Rajiv Hasan
Nottingham Hospitals' Radio
Silver
Joe Pilbrow
Radio Cherwell
Gold
Rhodri Buttrick
Hospital Radio Reading
Page 7
"Asha is cheeky, friendly and fun!. A
good pace to the links, and great
confidence. You could tell Asha
listens to every word a caller says.
And what a touch to actually go and
see a patient who sounded down!"
Collected by Sam Jenkins and Graham
Medhurst, Hospital Radio Chelmsford
"Mandy is the perfect tonic to being on
a hospital ward. A great variety of
guests and subjects, with a good
awareness of the right interview tone.
We could listen to Mandy all day - and
loved the story of the old lady Doris
who wanted a stripper!"
Female Presenter of the Year
"Marge is confident and direct, with a
conversational presentation style. Good pace
and direction in interviews. Lots of laughs -
great entertainment! You can tell she loves
the show and the station."
Gold
Asha Jhummu
Hospital Radio Chelmsford
Silver
Mandy Morrow
Radio Wey
Bronze
Marge Walker
Radio Brockley
Collected by Jon Morrow, Radio Wey
Collected by Emma Joyce, Radio Brockley
Page 8
"Different presenters in different
locations covering different
aspects of the start of the Great
North Run made this an interesting, atmospheric, at times
humorous, quick-paced programme with good continuity.
The cleverness in not trying to cover the whole race meant that the
presentation could be planned. The presenters also used words very
well to describe what they were seeing, which greatly helped the
listener."
"The start grabbed the listener
immediately, and this was followed by
a variety of presentation styles
including telephone and live reports,
and a cross section of interviewees
from competitors to volunteers. A very
slick, interesting programme with an
easy-to-follow flow for a listener."
Special Event
"A sensitive approach to a difficult subject, with a
good selection of interviews and very good presenta-
tion skills."
Silver
Cardiff Half Marathon
Radio Glamorgan
Gold
The Great North Run 2014,
The One Millionth Runner
Radio Tyneside Network
Bronze
Charity Bike Ride
Radio Brockley
Page 9
"This is simple radio, but
beautifully done. Excellently told
and good use of sound effects.
Outstanding. Very impressive
editing, soundscaping and
humour. Loved the knowledge,
and particularly liked the
subversion of Casablanca.
Brilliantly executed."
Silver
King Alfred Buses
Winchester Hospital Radio
"Ambitious. Great effects. A good variety of
voices and good storytelling - We wanted to
hear more! Really enjoyed the on-location
recording; it was really easy to imagine that
you were on the bus."
Best Speech Package
Bronze
The Epping to Ongar Railway
Harlow Hospital Radio
"Ambitious and well-recorded. It told us
things we didn't know. Good interviews. Lots
of effects. Loved it!"
Gold
THE Fairly Truthful Guide
To Geordie
Radio Tyneside Network
Page 10
Gold
Joe Pilbrow
Radio Cherwell
"Joe is relaxed, confident, in
control and, as listeners, we
really trusted him. A nice turn of
phrase, good with children."
Silver
Ruth Stapleton
Auckland Hospital Radio
"Ruth is nice and bubbly - fun to listen
to. Confident - you can tell she enjoys
the show. Made us smile several
times."
Best Newcomer
Bronze
Alison Sweatman
Radio Cherwell
"Alison sounded informed and natural when
interviewing, and clearly had a passion for
the orchestra. Good variety."
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The Geordie Hour
Radio Tyneside Network
"Great presentation style and
content. Outstanding. Local radio
could learn a lot from this show.
Wonderful idea, executed with
warmth and humour. Entertaining,
engaging, and a joy to listen to."
Silver
Another Opening , Another Show
Grampian Hospital Radio
"Good use of audio clips. Good to get a lo-
cal perspective. We thoroughly enjoyed this
engaging, interesting take on the show -
localising the content to the area to make it
relevant to the audience."
Best Specialist Music Programme
Bronze
Just For The Record
Hospital Radio Plymouth
"A very listenable, well-researched show,
packed full of interesting facts. An
informative and easy listen."
Gold
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Gold
Dave Warren &
Christine Rowley
Hospital Radio Bassingstoke
"Good to create talking points and to
involve the listeners too. Great to get
out-and-about on the wards - this
really made the presenters feel
involved and with the requests. Nice
clear and precise voices."
Award being collected by Dave Warren
Silver
Requestline
Hospital Radio Plymouth
"Lovely to have a nice request show, and
always nice to have a few corny gags
and impressions too! Great to put a
smile on the listeners' face. Two lovely
and complimentary voices; and a great
variety of music too."
Best Programme with
Multiple Presenters
Bronze
Ward Bingo
Radio Cherwell
"Radio ward bingo in hospital is a wonderful
idea. Listeners feel looked-after and involved.
Good fun and lively. Great relationship and
banter between Susie and Roy."
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Gold
Whipps Cross Zoo
Whipps Cross Hospital Radio
"Some of the listeners were an
absolute gift for this promo! An
amusing promo that met its
brief."
Collected on behalf of Whipps Cross
Hospital Radio by Steve Hickman,
HBA London Representative
Silver
New Members
CHBN
"Interesting retro-style to this promo, with
good sound effects that assist in the
delivery of a clear message with humour."
Station Promotion
Bronze
The Thursday Experience
Radio Brockley
"We loved the variety of patient voices in this
promo. It highlighted the variety of age
groups, with wisely-chosen comments
proving the value of music - and therefore
hospital radio - to people."
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Ted Hanson MBE
Radio Horton
"Ted is a former journalist who, back in
1964, had the idea to create a hospital
radio station in the local area. It meant
a year of detailed planning, buying
equipment and admin. Since then, Ted
has devoted most of his life to Radio
Horton. Ted played an integral part in
t h e s t a t i o n ' s r e c e n t 5 0 t h
anniversary celebrations, with a special
programme from the care home where
he now resides. He's described as an inspiration and, despite
deteriorating health, is still held in the highest regard by all who know
him."
John Gerrans
Hospital Radio Plymouth
"John joined HR Plymouth in 2013,
and has been instrumental in bringing
in vital funds ever since - even taking
part in his own sponsored walk. His
tireless efforts have seen collections
talking place in all major supermar-
kets. Everyone at the station says he's
quickly become a vital asset, often
stepping-in at short notice to help
arrange or take-over events if
required. He's a credit to all those
fundraising volunteers across the
country."
Fundraiser of the Year
Presented to Ted Hanson MBE by
Radio Horton
Photo Credit: Claire Brow
of The Ridings Care Home, Banbury
John Whitney Award
June Snowden presents award to
Andrew Hill, Hospital Radio Plymouth
Page 16
Report on HBA 2015 Conference
Bill Foster, Hospital Radio Barnet & recipient of conference bursary
I'm a relative 'newbie' to hospital
radio, having joined HR Barnet in
mid-2012 when I semi-retired from
a lifetime in the audio recording
business. Whilst exploring the HBA
website for conference information I
discovered the Bursary that's
awarded to a couple of station
volunteers each year and I
submitted an application. In early
February I was delighted to be told
I'd been accepted and I booked my
train ticket to Newcastle.
Arriving in Gosforth around lunchtime on the Friday I found that
many were already there... and being familiar with all the
procedures had snapped up all the places on the studio tours.
I had been forewarned, and it was immediately evident, that most of
the delegates had been many times before and everyone knew each
other. Happily, though, it's an inclusive community and in a very
short space of time I was engaging in conversations with others in
the hotel lobby.
There was just one seminar on Friday afternoon, the ‘PR,
Recruitment and Retaining Workshop’. Getting our existence across
in today’s world of rapid patient turnarounds is increasingly
difficult, as is finding the right kind of volunteers. Andy Carter had
some interesting ideas which I shall take back to our committee for
consideration.
Following the excellent dinner we were treated to ‘An Audience
with...’ a mystery guest. It turned out to be the still youthful
looking David ‘Kid’ Jensen, who with prompting from John Simons
reminisced about his days at Radio Luxembourg, Radio 1 and the
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various other stations he’s worked for in his almost 50 years of
broadcasting. This was apparently a departure from the quiz which
has been a staple of Friday night. Many sounded relieved!
I always think a 9am start is a bit
cruel when the networking is such
an important part of these events,
but I made sure I was up and
breakfasted in time for the
‘Hospital Radio in the Future NHS’
seminar. For me, this turned out
to be the jewel in the 2015 conference crown. Most of us are affected
in some way by the changes going on in the NHS, and it was
refreshing to hear from people who are dealing with these changes in
positive and constructive ways. That session gave me more take
aways than a branch of Burger King! I particularly liked the comment
from one panellist during a discussion on the possibility of using
WiFi delivery where the audio distribution system has been removed:
“I don't know about our patients listening on an iPad, most of them
have trouble managing their eye drops!”
In the 1990s I was involved in several audio
-over-ISDN projects, but I'm not really up to
speed with the latest IP-based codecs and
so it was a pleasant surprise to find Ian
Prowse – a man who knows absolutely
everything about sending audio over telco networks – giving a
tutorial on the latest developments in this area. Since Barnet FC lost
its local ground and moved a few miles away we've had to rely on
Skype, or even on occasions a mobile phone, to deliver our
commentaries back to the studio. Consumer technology is rarely the
best solution and we now have a few ideas to try out.
With some free time I hit the exhibition area. The 'usual suspects'
were there, of course, and it gave me an opportunity to ask a couple
of questions about our Myriad system.
The AGM attracted a full house and was conducted in a very civilised
manner, a far cry from some other organisations’ AGMs I have
In the Exhibition area
Delegates in a seminar
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a t t e n d e d . H o w e v e r , a n
unfortunate piece of scheduling
meant that the session which
followed, ‘HBA 2.0 Change for
Progress’ Sake’ had a much
smaller audience. This was a
shame because I am discovering,
the HBA appears to be at a
crossroads and the Trustees were
keen to canvass the views of the membership on where they should
be taking the association next. Happily, while the audience might
have been lacking in numbers it wasn't short of opinions and a very
lively debate ensued.
The HBA Awards are of course the big event of the conference and
the reason many attend. The afternoon's proceedings finished early
to allow time to do the make-up and don the posh frocks – and that
included the ladies!
To be honest, I've never been a fan of awards ceremonies, even when
involved as one of the nominees, and it was therefore with some
trepidation that I faced the prospect of 110 nominations and 33
awards. Thankfully Sean Dunderdale is an accomplished Master of
Ceremonies and cracked through it at a pace.
Once again the food
was excellent with
generous portions. In
fact, everything about
the hotel was of an
exceptionally high
s t a n d a r d w i t h
cheerful, friendly staff
for whom nothing
was too much
trouble. Next year's
venue will have a lot
to live up to. Dave Nicholson of Radio Tyneside shows the delegates
around the station
Delegates at the Awards Dinner
Page 19
After my unsuccessful attempts on Friday I managed to get one of the
last places on the final tour of Radio Tyneside. At just coming up for
40 years old HR Barnet is a youngster compared with these guys, who
began broadcasting in 1951 and have already celebrated their
Diamond Anniversary. Arriving at their door is a bit of a shock – it's a
terraced house! Inside, though, are a roomy office area, two
fully-equipped studios and a production suite. The latter also contains
all the racks of equipment needed to feed the three hospitals they
serve plus the local AM transmitter and online streaming service.
The station delivers a full daytime and evening schedule of live or
as-live programming and the AM service attracts many loyal listeners
in the local community. The Internet stream is not geo-locked so it's
enjoyed by people as far away as Australia, where their HBA award-
winning ‘Geordie Hour’ has a strong following amongst ex-pats from
the Newcastle area. A very impressive set-up and one of which Dave
Nicholson is justifiably proud.
Following another excellent lunch back at the hotel there was time to
catch up with some of my new-found friends before heading home.
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Dementia Friends
‘Understanding the needs of patients with Dementia’ was a seminar
with an official ‘Dementia Friends’ information session to start,
followed by what hospital radio volunteers can do to help patients
with dementia. The seminar was led by Anna O’Brien, who
volunteers with the Alzheimer’s Society.
‘Dementia Friends’ is about
r a i s i n g a wa ren es s o f
dementia, and then turning
that understanding into
action. The session included
discussion on the differing
types and stages of dementia.
It was interactive too, with
delegates taking part in
exercises designed to make
you think about what you
really know about the
condition. All of these
challenged some of the myths
about the disease, and
showed it is possible to live
well with dementia.
The second part of the
seminar focused on hospital radio specifically, and included how
best to approach someone with dementia when visiting the wards,
and ways you could help them when chatting and collecting music
requests. Also some ideas for programmes for patients with demen-
tia were discussed.
To end the session we were presented with a Dementia Friend’s
badge. As a result of this seminar I intend to get all our volunteers
at our station in Norwich through the programme. ….Mike Sarre
For more information go to www.dementiafriends.org.uk
Anna O’Brien of Winchester Hospital Radio
presents Rajiv Hasan of Nottingham Hospitals‘
Radio with his Dementia Friends badge
Supporting Hospital Broadcasting
Visit our shiny new website and sign up for
our newsletter and visit the forums
Page 24
Hospital Radio in the Future NHS
The future role of hospital radio was the topic of quite a lively debate
during a panel session at the HBA Conference. On the panel were
John Williamson from Bay Trust Radio in the Lake District, Mark
Sanders from CHBN in Cornwall, John Watson from Hospital Radio
Perth, and Dave Duford from Merthyr Hospital Radio.
Nigel Dallard, HBA Trustee and chairman of the
debate, set the scene by explaining that since
1980 the average length of stay in a UK hospital
has dropped from 11.7 days, to only 5.1 days,
and the median, or most-likely, stay is just 1 day.
Today, the NHS is focusing on self-care at home,
and supported care in the community. Public
Health is all about preventing people becoming ill in the first place.
At the turn of the millennium, hospitals were rushing to install
sophisticated bedside entertainment systems, whereas now, 15
years later, many of them are being switched off because they’re
life-expired and too expensive to either maintain or replace.
“Everyone” has a smartphone, tablet computer, or both, on which to
listen to their personal music collection, or stream TV from their
favourite on-demand service. The BBC’s Ben Cooper, recently said
“Radio has already lost the first battle against the mobile phone. How
do we address the needs of the on-demand generation?”
There was a consensus that the number of in-patient beds was only
going to reduce further, and that the days of ever-more sophisticated
bedside entertainment systems was over. John Watson disputed the
recent assertion by a spokesperson from Greater Glasgow & Clyde
Health Board that “most [patients] bring their own personal phones,
iPods and iPads to listen to their own choices of music”, getting the
first laugh of the day by claiming that the 80 year-olds in the Perth
Royal Infirmary could hardly work their eye-drops, let alone an iPad.
John Williamson argued that much more focus was needed on
serving the needs of out-patients in waiting rooms, explaining that in
Morecambe Bay, digital information screens were being rolled-out,
carrying all sorts of textual information, and with Bay Trust Radio as
Page 25
the background entertainment and information service. A contributor
from the floor agreed, and said that his station was already
rolling-out different programming during the day, aimed at the
outpatients waiting for their appointments, whilst reverting to the
traditional in-patient focused programming during the evening.
Mark Sanders offered an alternative view, where the focus was outside
the hospital, on encouraging and helping people to live a healthy,
active life, – keeping people out of hospital, rather than entertaining
those who were already ill. He explained that CHBN was awarded a
community radio licence in 2012, and had been on air about a year.
He said that whilst the traditional ward visits and request collecting
was still a key and core part of the service CHBN
now provided, they were also providing an
information, advice and support service to the local
community experiencing poor health. Topics cover
everything from smoking cessation and healthy
eating to recreational activities, even creative
writing – because it is accepted that mental health
is just as important as physical health.
As a result, Mark said that CHBN’s relationship with their NHS Trust
management had greatly improved, as they could see their aims and
objectives aligned very closely with their own – of improving the
health and wellbeing of the local population. This view was backed-up
by another audience member, who said that the NHS Trust running
their hospital had made it clear that the hospital radio station needed
to seriously examine the service it provided and its target audience,
strongly implying that they needed to look outside the hospital.
The debate ended with Dave McGealy from Radio Cavell (Oldham)
encouraging people to think about “healthy radio”, rather than
hospital radio, but issuing a strong warning to remember what
hospital radio was about. “Forget about competing with the local
commercial station. Our remit is to promote and encourage good
health. If we remember that, then all the ambitions, the goals, of
hospital radio can be served, but by addressing the wider local
community, rather than the narrower community stuck in hospital
beds.”
Page 26
Northumberland
Hospital Radio Visit
Northumberland Hospital Radio is based at Wansbeck General
Hospital in Ashington, about a 25 minute minibus ride from where
the conference hotel was. It provides a 24 hour service of
programming to Blyth Community Hospital, Hexham General Hosptal,
North Tyneside General Hospital and Wansbeck General Hospital. To
start with we were treated to a
short presentation by the trust,
explaining that there are some
800 volunteers in the trust as a
whole and that those at the
hospital radio are a very
important part of that. We were
then taken around the station’s
studios, which are situated in the
staff area of the hospital.
There are two studios and a
small office where the front of
equipment such as the satellite
receiver and silence detector etc. can also be seen. The back of this
equipment is reached from within another small air conditioned
room. NHR is another example of a station making the most of its
very small number of volunteers. …..Neil Ogden
Radio Tyneside Visit
Radio Tyneside was established in 1951 and broadcasts to 3 hospitals
across Tyneside: The Freeman Hospital, Newcastle; Queen Elizabeth
Hospital, Gateshead and the Royal
Victoria Infirmary, Newcastle. They
moved to their current studios close
to the RVI in March 2009, and can be
heard on Hospedia, on Low Powered
AM and online.
From the outside, it’s not easy to spot
that the building houses a radio
station. Apart from a small sign next
to the red front door, there is nothing
that makes this building look
Page 27
anything different to those along
the rest of the road.
The station has been lucky with the
accommodation that it has. When
you walk in, you get to a small
reception area and then a room
that is used for
meetings and a
small office area.
Then you go upstairs to where the studios are, past
the array of certificates on the wall.
Studio 1 is where all the live shows are broadcast
from. Studio 2 is used for production and record-
ing of shows and then there is an office/technical
area where the equipment such as the computer
servers is also situated. ….Neil Ogden
Got a story to tell then send it to:-
