Community Channel (communitychannel.org) Community Channel becomes the first supporter-owned national TV channel in the world

• Community Channel transforms into a Community Benefit Society after successfully raising nearly £400,000 through public crowdfunding
• Now the first supporter-owned national TV channel in the world dedicated to the benefit of its community
• New CEO and board members announced, providing industry leading expertise from across the media and charity sectors .

Community Channel - the channel of the community, by the community and for the community – has successfully relaunched. Independent, creatively renewed, and committed to social impact, Community Channel is now the world’s first crowdfunded, community-owned TV, online and mobile brand.

Through the Channel’s successful crowdfunding campaign in July it received a £390,000 endorsement from viewers and the industry to relaunch. Over the last five years the Channel’s audience has grown from four million to over 10 million unique viewers, plus tens of thousands more online and on-demand. Work is now underway to grow both the Channel’s TV and digital audiences even further.

The Channel has also announced its new Board, made up of industry leading experts from across the media and charity sectors. Chaired by Caroline Diehl, the Board comprises representatives from Sky, Channel 4, Arqiva and the Barrow Cadbury Trust.

Community Channel, which is available on Freeview, Sky, Virgin Media and Freesat, offers budding film makers and charities a platform to share their work and content. Launched in September 2000, the channel shows over 75% of original and UK-premiere programming and brings together a diverse mix of talent to create an impact for little-known and well-established organisations and their causes on the airwaves.

It is the only Channel that turns viewing into doing - a quarter of all viewers do more in their communities directly relating to programming they have watched on the channel.

Community Channel becomes the first supporter-owned national TV channel in the world

Alexander Kann, the new CEO of Community Channel, said: “I am very excited to be leading this truly unique broadcaster. In this ‘golden age’ of television we are ourselves creating a channel that is pioneering, eye-catching, and authentic.”

“We are the channel of the ‘makers’. We provide the platform for the pioneers in society to broadcast their message and inspire people to take action and generate positive social impact.”

Caroline Diehl, Community Channel Chair, said: “I have always believed that Community Channel is a positive and truly unique asset to British society. With divisions in our society clearer than ever, I hope that this new chapter for Community Channel can help bring communities together.”

Other members of the Community Channel Board include:

• Jack Eatherley – Head of Sky Academy at Sky
• Mike Finchen – Director at Arqiva
• Sarb Nijjer - Group Commercial Manager at Channel 4
• Bryher Scudamore – Former Editor-in-Chief of BBC Online and Trustee of the Eden Project
• Jack Serle – Award winning investigative journalist and Trustee of Barrow Cadbury Trust
• Jezz Wright – Founder of WayOut TV prison TV service, elected from the membership
• Roy Heath – Film maker, elected from the membership
• Jenny Walton – Head of Communications Services, Media Trust