University station shortlisted five times at national Community Radio Awards

Huge congratulations to Radio LaB, the University of Bedfordshire’s student-run station.

They are celebrating an impressive achievement: five nominations at the 2025 Community Radio Awards. This year’s awards are particularly special. It marks both their tenth edition and the 20th anniversary of community radio across the UK. Radio LaB’s nominations span digital content, creativity, and community work, showing just how vibrant student radio has become in the UK’s audio landscape.

The Digital Push and Leadership

Two nominations focus on how the station is being run behind the scenes. First up, they are nominated for Digital Content of the Year thanks to their “Radio LaB’s New Digital Content Strategy.” Getting content out is just as important as being live on air, so this major digital overhaul was essential. The strategy helped them streamline their on-demand listening service and boost social media interaction. It also helped students align their digital content with the university’s new Social Media Content Creation course.

Keeping a modern digital platform running smoothly takes serious technical muscle. Student stations now demand the same level of reliability once reserved for big commercial broadcasters. Think about managing live streams, handling loads of listeners at once, and keeping huge archives accessible on demand. This need for robust, always-on digital infrastructure is shared by many online platforms that depend on trust and instant processing. You see it everywhere: from financial services processing large volumes of transactions, to highly specialised digital environments such as betting exchange sites that require the same commitment to instant processing and encryption to guarantee trust, right through to gaming platforms handling busy live multiplayer sessions. It is a reminder that whether you are broadcasting student radio or running complex digital services, the underlying need for stability is surprisingly consistent.

Student leaders have not been forgotten either. The collective team of Radio LaB’s Student Managers is nominated for Young Person or People of the Year. Final-year manager Danielle Foley and her colleagues did a brilliant job keeping the station innovative and on air throughout a busy year. It is great to see that commitment recognised nationally.

Creativity and Essential Community Voices

Radio LaB secured a double nomination in the Arts & Creative Radio of the Year category, which shows off their ambitious programming. Their Halloween Murder Mystery impressed judges with its immersive audio and intricate, multi-voice storytelling.

Their second creative nomination, Choices: Deluxe Edition, a bespoke series designed to engage local school pupils with education and career pathways, came from a collaborative project developed with the Collaborative Targeted Outreach Programme. Using audio to engage with educational and community initiatives is a clever move. A recent report from a UK arts body highlighted the value of these cross-institutional projects for boosting both technical and creative skills. Senior Tutor and Radio LaB coordinator Terry Lee summed up the station’s ethos: “We want student voices to push boundaries, to produce work that stands beside professional output.”

Finally, the station’s commitment to service shines through with The Coeliac Shack podcast, which is shortlisted for the Voices of the Community Award. The show offers a relatable platform for young people dealing with a recent coeliac disease diagnosis. It is a genuine passion project, produced by Terry Lee with his daughter, Primrose. It proves that student broadcasters can do more than just entertain; they can genuinely support local needs. Danielle Foley added that being part of award-nominated projects has been a real confidence boost. It shows the passion and hard work of the team are being recognised on a national level.

What This Means for Radio

Five nominations across management, digital innovation, creativity, and community service are genuinely impressive. Whatever happens at the ceremony in Bradford this October, Radio LaB has already proven something important. Student radio is not just a training ground for future broadcasters. It is producing work that stands alongside professional output right now, while giving voice to communities that might otherwise go unheard. That is worth celebrating.