BBC Trust

The BBC's rolling news and Parliament coverage is high quality and provides good value for money, a report by the BBC Trust has concluded.

In its latest service review the Trust looked at the News Channel and BBC Parliament, and found them both to be meeting audiences' expectations and fulfilling the aims set for them by the Trust.

The Trust has urged BBC management to build on this success and keep the channels' content and style distinctive, particularly given the challenge of delivering the savings needed under the new licence fee settlement.

The key findings of the review are:

• The News Channel has record reach levels, with 19.9 per cent of UK adults viewing it during 2010/11, up from 11.5 per cent in 2006/7. Audiences rate this as the channel of choice for news on subjects such as the economy, politics, health and education.
• Despite these successes the News Channel must continue to improve and innovate, to keep it distinctive in an increasingly crowded marketplace for news.
• The Trust appreciates that the News Channel will need to play a part in delivering the savings needed by the new licence fee settlement, but urges management not to let any changes detract from the range and depth of stories covered.
• BBC Parliament audiences value the channel's live, unmediated coverage and highlights. They see this as unique and appreciate the chance to see proceedings first hand and put their own interpretation on them.
• BBC Parliament is attracting record and growing audiences, reaching more than one per cent of viewers for the first time last year. Reach tends to be highest during topical debates.
• BBC Parliament should ensure on-screen contextual information better meets the needs of viewers, and the Trust endorses its plans to introduce easier links to other BBC services so people can find more details about a subject quickly.

BBC Trustee David Liddiment, who led the review, said:

"It is clear that News Channel and BBC Parliament users see these services as distinctive, offering coverage and perspectives they cannot find elsewhere. It is also encouraging that these services are so consistently providing value for money for licence fee payers.

"The past year has seen some hugely significant news stories – from the summer riots and Royal wedding at home, to the Japanese earthquake and Arab Spring uprisings abroad – and audiences tell us that for big national stories the News Channel is their ‘go-to' service.

"Despite this strong performance the News Channel must keep seeking new ways to improve and innovate. There is no doubt that the marketplace for news is becoming increasingly crowded, so it is vital that the channel uses its resources wisely and maintains its distinctiveness and quality, to ensure it continues to deliver for licence fee payers."

Notes to Editors

1.  The BBC Trust exists to get the best out of the BBC for licence fee-payers. As part of this the Trust issues each service with a Service Licence, which sets out all its objectives. The Trust carries out five-yearly reviews of BBC services, to check they are performing correctly against their service licence and examine whether any changes to either the service or its licence objectives need to be made.
2. The full review of BBC News Channel and BBC Parliament can be found here.
3. More information about the BBC Trust and its work can be found at www.bbc.co.uk/bbctrust/