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The Community Radio Fund Panel: Terms of Reference

The Ofcom Board has delegated the discharge of its functions in relation to the distribution of grants from the Community Radio Fund to a committee known as the Community Radio Fund Panel.

Duties

The duties of the Community Radio Fund Panel shall be:

To decide, with reference to Ofcom’s statement of policy on the Community Radio Fund, the process for application and award of grants from the Community Radio Fund.
To consider applications for grants from the Fund
To make awards from the Fund to community radio licensees.
To consider the circumstances under which grants from the Fund shall become repayable to Ofcom.
To encourage applicants in the effective use of targeting the Fund’s resources.
To consider ways of expanding the Fund for future years.

Authority

Decisions of the Community Radio Fund Panel are final and not subject to internal review, reconsideration or appeal.

Membership

The Panel shall be appointed by the Ofcom Board.

The Chair of the Panel shall be appointed by the Ofcom Board. The person appointed may be external to Ofcom.

One member shall be appointed from the Community Media Association, which will be invited to nominate a member of the Panel.

One member shall be an Ofcom representative (who may be an executive colleague or a part-time member of an Ofcom Board, Committee or Panel).

A quorum shall be two. The Chairman of the Panel, or in his/her absence the Chair of the meeting, shall have a casting vote in the event that the Panel is unable to reach a consensual decision.

Members’ attendance through telephone or videolink is permissible for the purposes of determining a quorum.

Where the Chair of the Committee considers it appropriate decisions may be taken by email.

Meetings – attendance and arrangements

The Committee shall be attended by the relevant colleague(s) from the Radio Planning & Licensing team and, as appropriate, any other Ofcom colleagues and observers.

The Secretariat shall take a full note of meetings and keep proper records of all decisions.

Frequency of meetings

Meetings shall be held as and when required.

Reporting procedures

The Panel will report directly to the Ofcom Board. (It is independent of the Ofcom Radio Licensing Committee which awards community radio licences.)

Once a year the Panel will make a report to the Board on the grants it has made from the Community Radio Fund. The Board will then make a formal report to DCMS.

The Ofcom Board shall keep the delegation under review from time to time.