Oldham Community Radio are a Community Radio Station that targets the many varied communities that live and work in the Oldham Borough area.
Each year, Oldham Community Radio has organised a Meet and Greet event. Most recently, we have held this at the Chadderton Over 60's Club on Broadway in Chadderton, which provides an opportunity for some of our listeners to get together, meet the presenters and team from the station, and enjoy an afternoon with us! We feel this one of the unique dimensions to community broadcasting, an ideal way to engage with our audience and provide real social gain, which is part of our licensing obligations under regulator Ofcom.
This year's Meet and Greet was held on 22nd August 2023 and thanks to the Action Together Volunteer Grant, we could 'push the boat out' a little further by providing a hot lunch and entertainment for around 60 listeners who attended, along with 15 of our volunteers. The feedback was incredibly positive and resulted in a donation of approx £150 to the station funds!
The Meet and Greet is always a highlight of the Oldham Community Radio year and is very much a case of "if it ain't broke don't fix it"! Listeners who attend know roughly what to expect but were surprised by the added value this year thanks to the funding. We were fortunate to have no issues on the day and once again drew on the experience and support of volunteers. I feel they were truly valued and included in all aspects of the event.
Our feedback traditionally continues from listeners via their communications with Oldham Community Radio in our daily programming. Interestingly, this year's funded event has allowed us to work alongside Billington's in Oldham so as to take our popular afternoon 'Wireless Programme' on the road to their location, to be used as a catalyst for proposed tea-dances on Friday afternoons. This too is part of the social gain part of our service and, as a legacy to the event moving forwards, will now allow us to present a series of Mini Meet and Greets throughout the year, thanks to Action Together!
