This episode of Spotlight on Business on Soar Sound features James Burkmar, Workspace Development Manager at LCB Depot in Leicester. He reflects on his career journey, explains the growth of the creative economy, and shares how LCB Depot has become a hub for networks, events and collaboration. The discussion highlights the role of initiatives like Last Friday and the new Canopy development at Pilot House in supporting creative enterprises and strengthening Leicester’s identity as a centre for innovation and community. The first edition of our new Spotlight on Business series on Soar Sound features a conversation with…

This episode of Spotlight on Heritage marks National Sporting Heritage Day with John Coster and Rob Watson discussing the importance of preserving grassroots sport. They reflect on the legacy of major events like the Olympics and Paralympics, the challenges of sustaining community clubs, and the role of volunteers in keeping local sport alive. The conversation highlights how photographs, programmes and memories from cycling clubs, football teams and minority sports all contribute to a shared civic heritage that deserves recognition and support. In this week’s Spotlight on Heritage, John Coster and Rob Watson mark…

This episode of Spotlight on Leicester features Dave Bushby from Age UK’s Carers Support Service. The discussion explores the realities of unpaid carers in Leicester, the support available through groups, trips, and activities, and the importance of carers’ health and well-being. Dave highlights the role of community connections, GP referrals, and social prescribing, as well as the challenges of funding and recognition. The conversation shows why carers’ contributions matter and how services help them feel supported and valued. In this episode of Spotlight on Leicester, John Coster and Rob Watson are joined by Dave Bushby, Team Manager of the Carers Support Service at Age…

The latest Spotlight on Arts podcast explores the work of the Bell Foundry Community Committee in Loughborough. Rob Watson speaks with Trevor Potter and Miffy Ryan about grassroots responses to deprivation, poverty, and social isolation. They describe how local residents are developing self-sustaining projects such as gardening, upcycling, and community-led creativity to strengthen resilience and independence. The discussion highlights questions of class, empowerment, and the value of grassroots action in shaping stronger neighbourhoods built on trust, talent, and shared responsibility. This edition of Spotlight on Arts comes from Loughborough town centre, where Rob Watson spoke with Trevor Potter and Miffy Ryan about the Bell Foundry Community Committee.

In this edition of Spotlight on Arts we talk with Nicholas Daniel OBE, one of Britain’s most celebrated oboists and the long-standing Creative Director of the Leicester International Music Festival. Nicholas shares his story of how he first came to prominence as BBC Young Musician of the Year at just 18, and how his passion for performance, teaching, and commissioning new works has shaped a career that now influences audiences worldwide. The conversation explores the themes and programme of the 2025 Leicester International Music Festival, which takes place from…

The latest Spotlight on Heritage podcast features Rob Watson in conversation with John Coster about the upcoming Saturday Heritage Fair in Leicester. They discuss the importance of independent heritage, where family stories and personal artefacts are valued alongside official narratives. The fair offers a space for intergenerational learning, storytelling, and authentic community connection. With live broadcasts from Soar Sound and contributions from Radio Lear, the event highlights how lived experience shapes understanding of the past, present, and future. This edition of Spotlight on Heritage turns the tables, with Rob Watson interviewing John Coster about the upcoming Saturday Heritage Fair.

At the Leicester Communities Together Festival on 13 September 2025, Jubilee Square hosted advice stalls, performances and family activities. Reporting for Soar Sound, Helen Pettman, editor of the Evington Echo, interviewed local organisations including Citizen's Advice, Age UK, Leicester Libraries and Turning Point. Her conversations highlighted support for housing, mental health, carers, fostering and community creativity. Well attended and energetic, the festival showed how Leicester’s communities share knowledge and build connections, with organisers praised for delivering an event that was both informative and enjoyable. The Leicester Communities Together Festival, held on 13 September 2025 in Jubilee Square, proved to be a lively and meaningful occasion, bringing local people and organisations into the heart of the city.

The Leicester Communities Together Festival on 13 September 2025 brought Jubilee Square alive with advice stalls, performances and community spirit. Hosted by John Coster for the Spotlight on Leicester podcast, the event featured engaging conversations with local leaders, artists and volunteers. Topics ranged from diversity and resilience to mental health and creativity, showing how Leicester’s communities work together. Well attended and lively, the festival proved both informative and entertaining, highlighting collaboration as a strength of the city. The Leicester Communities Together Festival, held on 13 September 2025 in Jubilee Square, brought hundreds of people together for a day of shared learning, celebration and connection.

Spotlight on Leicester explores the Communities Together Festival in Jubilee Square, where services, charities and community groups meet residents. In the podcast, Kate Galoppi outlines council support, Mo Peberdy shares lived experience of volunteering, and Krupa Bhatt highlights inclusion. Together they show why face-to-face contact matters and how the festival builds stronger connections. This event is part of Leicester’s wider commitment to accessible support, participation and wellbeing across the city. In this edition of Spotlight on Leicester, we focus on the upcoming Leicester Communities Together Festival, which brings people, services and community groups into Jubilee Square for a day of connection and celebration.

This Spotlight on Arts episode features live artist and curator Miffy Ryan in conversation with John Coster and Rob Watson. Miffy reflects on her journey from early creative interventions at school to her current practice of live art, curation, and community collaboration. She discusses using art as a language to process emotions, challenge institutional expectations, and create open, improvisational spaces where people can explore creativity on their own terms. Highlights include her “Lady of the Sea” performance at Leicester’s Highcross shopping centre, her focus on trust and vulnerability in collaboration, and her role in the upcoming Docspace exhibition.

Soar Sound is inviting volunteers to take part in two major Leicester events this autumn. On 13 September 2025, the Information and Advice Festival at Jubilee Square will showcase services for health, activity, and community support, with Soar Sound broadcasting live stories and interviews. On 11 October 2025, the Saturday Heritage Fair at Leicester Adult Education will bring together over 25 local heritage projects, workshops, and talks, where Soar Sound volunteers will interview exhibitors and visitors, create live content, and share updates online. Volunteers can gain hands-on experience in audio recording, editing, photography, and social media, while connecting with people in the community media and heritage sectors.

What does community media offer that mainstream broadcasters cannot? How are local radio stations like Utsav Radio and Satsang Radio preserving language, music, and cultural identity in Leicester? Why is the Evington Echo still vital for community storytelling after four decades? What inspires new volunteers to join local journalism, and how can younger generations shape its future? How do events like the Soar Sound Roadshow strengthen connections across diverse communities?

How can collaborative community media strengthen local connections and cultural life? What benefits do volunteers gain by sharing their skills with grassroots media projects? Why do initiatives like the Evington Echo, UTSAV, Satsang, and Soar Sound Radio need wider support to remain sustainable? What role can professional expertise play in helping these organisations develop robust governance, training, and creative capacity? How does active participation in local media enhance personal growth, build networks, and contribute to inclusive civic engagement?

Explore the stories behind DocPhoto 8 in this Spotlight on Arts episode. Hear from photographers and curators about creativity, collaboration, and the evolving role of photography in documenting life, culture, and history. Listen now on Soar Sound. The latest episode of Spotlight on Arts takes us to the basement gallery of Leicester’s Adult Education Centre, where the DocPhoto 8 exhibition recently concluded.

Radiocentre’s Force for Good report highlights commercial radio’s role in providing trusted news, companionship, and community support, but defining true public value requires more than audience size or market success. Under the UK Social Value Act, public funding or regulatory privilege must demonstrate measurable social, economic, and environmental benefits, ensuring accountability rather than industry self-assessment. Commercial radio deserves recognition for its independence, yet public purpose media needs clear terms, transparent evaluation, and alignment with national policy priorities.

What does the rise of IP radio mean for community, public, and place-based media? As streaming platforms overtake traditional AM/FM listening, this blog explores how internet-delivered audio is reshaping access, regulation, and sustainability. It assesses current listening trends, the policy lag behind the digital shift, and asks whether new models can support public interest content in an open, platform-driven landscape. Essential reading for community broadcasters, policymakers, and media advocates navigating the transition from regulated airwaves to borderless digital audio.

By John Coster, Director, Independent Heritage Network Imagine you’ve just experienced a bereavement. A box of personal belongings – school reports, passports, old photographs, perhaps mementos fro…

Spotlight on Arts features Leicester artist Samantha Peppard discussing her journey from early commissions inspired by her family’s dairy farm to establishing a career in the creative sector. She talks about studying illustration at UWE Bristol, working from Churchgate Studios, experimenting with materials, and developing public art projects such as painted windows. This episode explores balancing creativity with earning a livelihood, building community connections, working with charities, and encouraging young people to follow their artistic interests.

Explore the stories behind DocPhoto 8 in this Spotlight on Arts episode. Hear from photographers and curators about creativity, collaboration, and the evolving role of photography in documenting life, culture, and history. Listen now on Soar Sound. The latest episode of Spotlight on Arts takes us to the basement gallery of Leicester’s Adult Education Centre, where the DocPhoto 8 exhibition recently concluded.

What does community media offer that mainstream broadcasters cannot? How are local radio stations like Utsav Radio and Satsang Radio preserving language, music, and cultural identity in Leicester? Why is the Evington Echo still vital for community storytelling after four decades? What inspires new volunteers to join local journalism, and how can younger generations shape its future? How do events like the Soar Sound Roadshow strengthen connections across diverse communities?

In this episode of Spotlight on Arts, John Coster and Rob Watson are joined by Sean Clark, a Leicester-based digital artist, technologist, and the curator behind the Computer Arts Archive. What unfolds is a wide-ranging and reflective conversation tracing Sean’s early creative experiments on the BBC Micro through to his pioneering use of the internet in the early 1990s—and his current mission to uncover and document the overlooked stories of digital creativity.

In this Spotlight on Heritage episode, Bashir shares family photographs that trace journeys from India and Africa to the UK. We explore photography as a social record, preserving memory, identity, and culture across generations. Listen now on Soar Sound. Spotlight on Heritage returns to the Basement Gallery at Leicester’s Adult Education Centre during the closing days of the DocPhoto 8 exhibition.