Bristol radio station Ujima 98fm has won the title of Community Radio Station of the Year at the inaugural National Community Radio media awards.
Ujima’s Primrose Granville also won Gold for best Female Presenter.
The station – a community interest company – has won a number of accolades over recent years, including a National Diversity Award, and many regional awards for its unique and engaging combination of talk and music.
Ujima promotes African-Caribbean culture and those without a voice, whether as unsigned artists in music and art, or community campaigners fighting for social justice and civil rights.
The station, based in Silver Street in the city centre, also promotes issues impacting woman and the LGBT and transgender communities through specialist programming.
Ujima Radio is run exclusively by local volunteers for whom they provide training in all aspects of radio production and broadcasting in exchange for commitment to support their operational work.
The judges said the station had a strong sense of purpose in empowering grass roots and less advantaged people in the Bristol area.
Its enthusiasm and passion attracted wider interest and audiences accordingly and combined strong impacting projects with good quality radio.
“Great use of targeted community radio to enhance and spread the culture of the Afro-Caribbean communities in Bristol,” the judges said.
“The sound is reminiscent of some Caribbean radio stations. Clearly does a great job for the target audience and would be very relevant to young and older people interested in integration, black music, their own and their parents’ culture and also I feel the white Bristolian community – since they rub shoulders constantly in Bristol. Good glue for a potentially volatile city.
“A strong sense of local ownership, Ujima has a big impact in many ways. Interesting and engaging content.”
Ujima executive chair Roger Griffith said: “We’ve faced huge challenges over the past eight years of broadcasting and now finally we have achieved not just regional and national recognition, but now also resources through support from the Arts Council (England).
“Ujima Radio is a movement and very much a collective effort involving over 120 volunteer presenters , unpaid directors and back office support from over 30 different nationalities.”
Primrose, better known as Miss Prim, was singled out by the judges as not only a tough interviewer who can ask challenging questions but who also creates positive rapport and on-air chemistry with her interviewees.
She overcame a life-changing injury to become a successful broadcaster and community campaigner.
The awards were held last weekend in Birmingham.
Pictured, from left: Ujima founder and director Kevin Philemon, presenter Primrose Granville and executive chair Roger Griffith
