BBC Blast Seeks Young Local Sports Reporters in Liverpool

BBC Blast (www.bbc.co.uk/blast), the learning project inspiring young people to get creative, is offering local 18-22 year olds in Liverpool the chance to become Blast Young Reporters this summer. The Blast Young Reporters 2006 competition is a fantastic opportunity for young people with a passion for sports to learn more about reporting and develop journalism skills. The winning reporters will receive training and a placement working alongside journalists at their local BBC. Getting involved couldn't be easier, simply visit www.bbc.co.uk/blast/opportunities and complete an application form before 12 May 2006.

Young people with an interest in sports should apply to become a sports reporter and find out how to put together radio programmes. Blast reporters will get the chance to interview famous sportsmen and women at local events and become news hounds seeking out emerging sports talent preparing to become Olympians in 2012 or newcomers in extreme or street sports.

Successful candidates will attend a training weekend at the end of June and receive on the job training, a BBC mentor to coach them and an eight week placement at their local BBC to work alongside experienced journalists. The reporters' stories will be published on local Where I Live websites.

Claire Bloomfield, a BBC Blast Young Reporter 2005, comments:- "My work as a Blast Young Reporter allowed me to develop my journalism skills including interview techniques, report writing and photography. I got to cover one of the hottest club nights in the north east and interviewed Retro DJ Paul Taylor in his DJ booth whilst on set. Working with the BBC was a brilliant experience giving me the opportunity to meet other ambitious young journalists from around the country and prepared me for starting a journalism degree at university this September. Blast is a fantastic inspiration to young journalists like myself and is an excellent way to promote the talent of young people."

BBC Blast is a unique BBC project created to inspire and engage 13 to 19 year olds to bring their creative ideas to life by offering them opportunities to explore their interest in art, dance, music, film, writing or digital creativity. Bringing together online, television and radio and community events, BBC Blast facilitates young people to develop their own ideas, find contacts, and showcase their own work, building young people's confidence and know-how through professional support.

LCC and PfS announce next phase of £400m BSF programme

LIVERPOOL City Council (LCC) and Partnerships for Schools (PfS) have reached an agreement on the way forward for Liverpool's £400million Building Schools for the Future programme. 5 schools will be completely rebuilt through BSF in the first phase of work: West Derby Comprehensive School with Ernest Cookson School, King David High School and Gateacre Community Comprehensive School with Hope School. Six schools will be also extensively refurbished, and a further 20 schools will benefit during the next phase of work, affecting a total of 30,000 pupils. The first schools are due to open in 2009. LCC will very shortly submit its detailed business case and plans to the Department for Education and Skills.

LCC and PfS have worked closely to agree the most appropriate delivery and funding mechanism for the schools. A study carried out by LCC found that PFI funding does demonstrate the best value for money solution for the new schools. However, very specific local factors have meant that in this instance PfS has decided to fund Liverpool's BSF programme with conventional capital funding. LCC are committed to ensuring the sustainability and standards of their rebuilt and refurbished schools, and will require all contracts for Liverpool's schools to contain long-term commitments to lifecycle costs and facilities management. This model will ensure a comparable quality of schools achieved for pupils and the wider community consistent with what is being delivered by the BSF programme elsewhere.

LCC and PfS will now move to procure a Public Private Partnership which, with the successful private sector partner, will be responsible for delivering the BSF programme in Liverpool. The partnership will also maximise the potential of the existing delivery frameworks that LCC have in place for ICT and design.

Colin Hilton, Interim Chief Executive of Liverpool City Council said:- "We are delighted to have reached agreement on the way forward for Liverpool. Whilst we recognise that PFI does offer an effective and value-for-money solution for new schools, we are pleased that Liverpool's individual needs have been reflected in this agreement with PfS. We now look forward to moving into the delivery phase of this vital programme"

Richard Bowker, Chief Executive of Partnerships for Schools, said:- "Liverpool City Council's BSF investment represents an important part of the overall BSF programme. We are pleased to now be able to move forward with our colleagues in Liverpool and put in place an education partnership to benefit the children of Liverpool.  Notwithstanding the one-off characteristics of Liverpool's case, we are very pleased it has been evidenced that PFI represents value for money. Our decision was finely balanced and we consider that this is a sensible and pragmatic approach. In future we will ensure that any complicating factors are addressed right at the very outset, perhaps even before a Local Authority enters the BSF programme, so that we can rigorously apply the standard approach"