14/04/2003

Education vision offers 'Teachers TV'

Teachers are set to have their own cable TV channel - delivering programmes on classroom resources, training and latest news from the education sector.

Under the working title Teachers TV (TTV), the satellite and cable channel will broadcast for 18 hours a day to viewers in their own homes and around half of the content is expected to be new programming.

The channel will be editorially independent from the government and run by a third party supplier. The content is also intended to be helpful to all people who work in schools including heads, governors, teaching assistants and budget managers.

Welcoming plans for the channel, Schools Standards Minister David Miliband said: "This is an innovative and exciting proposition for teachers. It will provide unique support for people who work in schools and will bring useful information together in one place to save time and add value.

"Research shows that teachers are likely to tune into the channel during work planning and development time. Therefore it should help to cut down their workload, as well as support them in raising standards."

The format of Teachers' TV (TTV) has been developed through consultation with teachers to make programmes "relevant and useful".

A decision on who will run the pilot is expected by the autumn. The pilot phase will run for three months and if successful, a full channel launch will follow in early 2004.

The invitation to tender has now been published, inviting broadcasters, producers and other potential providers of the channel to bid for the pilot.

The value of the contract will be disclosed once it has been awarded.

(GMcG)

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