RADIO COMMISSIONING

Commissioning Brief

Commissioning Brief No. 47163, Round 3, 2022/23 SCIENCE MAGAZINE TENDER from April 2022 to March 2025 with option to renew for up to two additional years

V3 updated by LL 18.06.21 BBC Radio Commissioning Brief_v1.3_2021 03 04

CONTENTS

SECTION A: EDITORIAL OPPORTUNITY ...... 3 Radio 4 ...... 4 The Science Magazine opportunity ...... 5 Presenter ...... 5 Key requirements ...... 5 Proposal to include ...... 6 Diversity and Inclusion ...... 6 Success Measures ...... 6 Risk Management ...... 6 Price ...... 7 SECTION B: PROCESS, ASSESSMENT & EVALUATION ...... 8 The four stages ...... 8 Assessment criteria ...... 9 Evaluation team ...... 10 SECTION C: THE COMMISSIONING TIMETABLE ...... 11 SECTION D: FULL PROPOSALS AND REFERENCE INFORMATION ...... 12

2 of 12 BBC Radio Commissioning Brief_v1.3_2021 03 04

SECTION A: EDITORIAL OPPORTUNITY Commissioning Brief ID / Title: 47163 / Science Magazine

Commissioning owner Mohit Bakaya

Commissioning contact Lea Lauvray

Commissioning Brief title Science Magazine

Network Radio 4

Guide gross price £5500

Genre Factual

Schedule slot Thursday 1630, repeat Thursday 2100

Duration 28’

Number of episodes per Approx. 52 year

Live / recorded Live or recorded

Transmission period April 2022 to March 2025, with an option to renew for up to two additional years

Production location If live, from a BBC studio Geographical location undefined

Important:

If you are on the Radio & Music supplier database, you need not complete an eligibility form.

There is no short proposal stage.

Your proposal must be submitted via Proteus before noon on 15 July 2021 Please submit in good time to avoid unforeseen network problems. Late submissions will not be accepted. Enter it under Radio 4, Round 3, 2022-2023, brief 47163, Science Magazine. It should be no longer than six sides of A4 using Arial font, size 11, in the full synopsis field of the Proteus form, including all the information requested in this brief.

3 of 12 BBC Radio Commissioning Brief_v1.3_2021 03 04

Radio 4

Radio 4 is unique in the breadth and quality of its informative, educational and entertaining programming. Every day, on air and online, Radio 4 has more original content than any other broadcaster in the world. Its authoritative news and current affairs journalism is complemented by programmes exploring many areas, including science, arts, history, religion, ideas, and comedy, offered through regular strands, -off programmes and special seasons.

In the first quarter of 2020 (the most recent for which figures are available) Radio 4 was reaching a weekly audience of 11 million, with an average age of 57. The latest RAJAR report is available on the Radio 4 Commissioning website. An audience pack relating to this commission will also be available on the site.

The station is always seeking to understand and reflect the changing nature of the UK, and the changing consumption of audio content. We want to find new ways of reaching beyond our existing base, to extend our journalism and storytelling to audiences that might be poorly served by other media, right across the social and geographical landscape. We are passionate about letting as many people as possible in on the Radio 4 secret, by finding imaginative new ways to engage them.

Further, as the podcast market grows, we aim to attract a new generation to Radio 4 as the home of intelligent audio, whether broadcast or on-demand.

BBC Sounds offers us a brilliant opportunity to reach listeners who may not yet have the Radio 4 habit. There is an avid and growing online Radio 4 audience. There are around 26 million downloads of Radio 4 content each month, around 15 million of them within the UK.

All Radio 4 programmes appear on BBC Sounds and we also commission content which is either digital-first or digital-only. Increasingly, we want our content to work on both platforms. We have had great success here with Intrigue: Tunnel 29, Girl Taken, The Whisperer in Darkness, Grounded with Louis Theroux, You’re Dead to Me and many other commissions. We also know that flagship Radio 4 programmes, like , , In Our Time and , are extremely popular on Sounds. Most of the listening in BBC Sounds - live and on demand - is to Radio 4 content.

We want to build on this success with this important strand tender.

Mohit Bakaya

Controller, Radio 4 & Radio 4 Extra

4 of 12 BBC Radio Commissioning Brief_v1.3_2021 03 04

The Science Magazine opportunity

From Covid 19 to climate change, Krispr to AI, science is changing our world. The understanding of that science, the methodology behind it and the ethical choices involved are increasingly essential to our citizenship. If Radio 4’s job is to make sense of the world for our audience, we cannot achieve this without describing, analysing and interrogating the scientific forces that swirl around us.

Radio 4 is looking for a weekly, year-round programme that connects science to the way people live and the way in which it is dramatically changing our landscape. Crucially, this should be a programme that takes science and scientific discovery out of the lab and into people’s homes and lives in a way that clarifies, engages and feels relevant. It must not trade solely on the science journals or features stories with little reference to people’s lives.

It must be intelligent, curious and grown up in tone but it must not place barriers between the audience and the understanding of science. All scientific disciplines should be explored over the year and serious thought will need to go into how to make the more complex disciplines, such as particle physics, accessible to the audience. The successful supplier will need to think hard about the unique challenges for radio, compared to TV or print.

As this is a weekly show, the editorial engine, edition to edition, is mostly what has happened in the world since the last programme. That topicality means that solid, proven science journalism skills and experience are essential. Sometimes the journalism will need to be put into service to explain, demystify or provide context for the science that is making headlines in other media that week.

However, there is also a place for the celebration of wonder and new discovery in the scientific world. While recognising that the programme needs to reflect the week it is broadcast in, it must also seek out and show the ways in which science can electrify our imagination, confound our expectations and upend how we see the world.

Presenter

Your ideas for presenter(s) will be a key element in our evaluation. The presenter will be a very good communicator, probably with a solid science background, passionate about translating complex ideas and important discoveries for both the core Radio 4 audience and the potential new, replenisher audience on digital platforms.

We will need to know whether you have approached your proposed presenter(s) and whether they have expressed a willingness to take on this major broadcasting commitment, in the event that you are successful.

Key requirements

We are inviting tenders from a single supplier (or supplier partnership) to produce this major specialist strand. To be successful, you must be able to demonstrate:

• Substantial scientific expertise at producer and executive producer level, preferably in a number of disciplines.

5 of 12 BBC Radio Commissioning Brief_v1.3_2021 03 04

• Extensive experience of science journalism and making first class science content, whether audio or video.

• Deep knowledge of BBC Editorial Guidelines and a demonstrable ability to manage the editorial risks of this output.

• Proven business and technical capacity to deliver this programme, weekly, throughout the year, maintaining the highest technical standards.

Proposal to include

Your written proposal should include evidence to demonstrate all the requirements above.

It should also include treatments for three episodes for three sample weeks, of your choosing, in the period May to June 2021.

It should include ideas about significant areas you might focus on in your first year, including ideas for big themes which can make an impact for Radio 4 beyond the programme and beyond the linear schedule.

It should address how the programme, as a whole, will reflect scientific activity and the impact of science, right across the UK.

It will have ideas for how to make the maximum impact in BBC Sounds, and other platforms, reaching new audiences there, while appealing to the core Radio 4 audience.

It will show an awareness of its place in the overall Radio 4 ecology and how best it can complement other scientific content.

Diversity and Inclusion

Radio 4 aims to reflect the UK of and tomorrow in all its aspects. This strand will play a vital part in deepening and widening this relationship. We want to hear your ideas for new approaches to attract the fullest diversity of listeners. (See also Section D of this brief.)

Success Measures

The programme will maintain and, ideally, build audience reach and share for the linear schedule, as well as enhancing qualitative audience appreciation. It will build on, and enhance, Radio 4’s strong reputation among UK scientific communities and institutions.

Risk Management You will demonstrate an awareness of the editorial risks involved in content of this kind and have the capacity, at executive producer level, to mitigate them. You will be required to deliver programmes in line with the BBC’s Editorial Guidelines and be able to adapt to the BBC’s changing editorial and business needs during the period of the commission.

6 of 12 BBC Radio Commissioning Brief_v1.3_2021 03 04

You must be able to demonstrate the business and technical capacity to deliver this programme throughout the year. We need to know that you properly understand the production risks and have plans to manage them effectively.

You should consider the possibility that TUPE may apply to this commission and have a plan to meet this risk.

Price

The gross guide price includes presenter fees and overheads.

The commission is offered as a fixed price contract. The supplier is responsible for any overspend and entitled to retain any underspend, as long as delivery requirements are satisfactorily met.

The contract will be offered on BBC IP commissioning special terms here: Special Terms (bbc.co.uk)

7 of 12 BBC Radio Commissioning Brief_v1.3_2021 03 04

SECTION B: PROCESS, ASSESSMENT & EVALUATION

The four stages

STAGE 1: Full proposal

Step 1: Producers will be offered the opportunity to discuss the programme brief with the commissioning team, prior to submitting their full proposal. Please email questions in advance to [email protected].

Step 2: Producers submit a full proposal, via Proteus, responding to this commissioning brief, which includes all the elements outlined in Section D (“Full Proposals”). Your proposal should not exceed six sides of A4 when printed using Arial font, size 11, including all the information requested in this brief.

STAGE 2: Pitch

Step 1: You may be invited to a pitch meeting via Zoom with the evaluation team. You will be asked to elaborate on your proposal and to answer questions. We may ask you to bring additional material. You will be asked to start with a presentation. More detail will be given when you are invited to the pitch.

Step 2: Following the pitch, the evaluation team will re-evaluate your written proposal against the assessment criteria below, considering the responses given during the pitch, and any additional material requested. The evaluation team may then decide to award the contract to the producer which best meets the assessment criteria. At any stage of the process, we may need to come back to you to seek clarification. Your answers will be factored into the evaluation process as appropriate.

Step 3: We may decide to hold second interviews, if we need more information to be able to differentiate between proposals. Before deciding, we may ask you to make a non- broadcast pilot, the cost of which we will meet. We will allow three weeks for the delivery of pilots, if required.

STAGE 3: Contract signed

STAGE 4: Feedback

Feedback may be requested by suppliers on unsuccessful proposals that reach the pitch stage. Once notified of the result you have two weeks to send a feedback request to [email protected]. Feedback will be provided within two weeks.

8 of 12 BBC Radio Commissioning Brief_v1.3_2021 03 04

Assessment criteria

We will assess your proposal and pitch against these criteria: editorial proposal and capability, diversity, value for money and risk, weighted as shown.

Assessment criteria Weighting

Editorial proposal and capability

Key indicators: • Editorial fit with the scope of the tender, in the context of Radio 4 strategic objectives 55% • Appropriate knowledge: deep understanding of the subject • Format: structure and tone of the programme and podcast • Innovation: evolution of content and tone to attract new audiences, without losing existing listeners • Track record: production team experience in recent and relevant content of high editorial and technical quality • Collaboration: ability to work collaboratively with other production teams and partners • Digital: engagement of new audiences on digital platforms

• Diversity: strategies to evolve diversity in its broadest sense, in terms of 10% representing the whole of the UK today and reaching the widest audience (see also Section D of this brief)

Value for money Key indicators: • Budget: financial plan, including a full budget breakdown showing 15% production and overhead costs, sustainable beyond contract term • Price: confirmation that price per episode can be met and does not exceed guide price • Efficiency: demonstrable efficiency of the production process; potential ability to deliver additional value to the BBC • Contract terms: acceptance of key contract terms (including compliance with all applicable UK law)

Risk Key indicators: 20% • Editorial: ability to manage the editorial risk in this content • Production: ability to manage delivery of content on this scale • Business continuity: robustness of business continuity plans • Conflict of interest: confirmation that there are no conflicts of interest; evidence of understanding how these might arise • Legislation and policy: ability to comply with relevant UK legislation, including TUPE, and BBC policies (not limited to editorial policies)

9 of 12 BBC Radio Commissioning Brief_v1.3_2021 03 04

Evaluation team

The following people may be involved in the evaluation of your proposal at various stages: • Mohit Bakaya, Controller and main commissioning contact • Daniel Clarke, Commissioning Editor, Factual • A Procurement Manager • A Business Affairs Manager Other advisers (e.g. editorial policy, digital, finance, legal) may be confidentially consulted.

10 of 12 BBC Radio Commissioning Brief_v1.3_2021 03 04

SECTION C: THE COMMISSIONING TIMETABLE

The commissioning process for this opportunity consists of several stages, as set out below.

Stage Timings Activities (all midday) Launch Mid June Publication of commissioning brief documentation and round opens in Proteus.

Full Proposal Mon 21 June – Opportunity to discuss commissioning brief with the and shortlisting Fri 09 July commissioning team prior to submitting full proposals. Please email questions in advance to [email protected].

Thurs 15 July: Deadline for full proposal to be submitted via Proteus. Late submissions cannot be accepted. 12 noon Evaluation panel shortlists full proposals.

w/c 26 July Shortlisted suppliers may be invited for a pitching meeting.

Pitch w/c 13 Pitches, via zoom, with shortlisted suppliers. September ** Please make sure you are available for pitching during this window ** Following the pitch, we may ask for a second interview and/or we may ask you to make a non-broadcast pilot, the cost of which we will meet. We will allow three weeks for the delivery of pilots, if required. Conditional November Commissioning decision made, commissioning Commission specification completed and contract issued. and Contract November Agreement of all programme related deliverables and technical specifications. Full contract signed.

Feedback Feedback on rejected full proposals provided in Proteus. Suppliers have two weeks to request further feedback. Feedback will be provided within two weeks of receiving the request.

If you have questions about this commissioning brief that need answering before you submit your full proposal, email them to [email protected] by Friday 09 July 2021.

11 of 12 BBC Radio Commissioning Brief_v1.3_2021 03 04

SECTION D: FULL PROPOSALS AND REFERENCE INFORMATION

Please refer to this important information on the Radio commissioning website, regarding submission of your full proposal, including guidance on how to set out your budget.

Proposals must be submitted in accordance with the requirements contained in this commissioning brief and on the commissioning website. Proposals not complying may be rejected by the Commissioner whose decision in this matter will be final.

All the information required should be included in the (maximum) six pages of your proposal.

The BBC reserves the right at any time prior to award of a commission, and without incurring any liability to the affected suppliers, to accept or reject any proposal, or to annul the commissioning process, rejecting all proposals.

By submitting your proposal, you confirm acceptance of the key contract terms.

More information relating to all commissioning briefs and rounds, regardless of station, can be found on the Pitching ideas page of the Radio commissioning website.

BBC Radio Diversity & Inclusion commitment

We are interested in working with suppliers who share our Diversity & Inclusion values. BBC Radio has committed itself to spending £12m in the three years from financial year 2021/22 on newly competed commissions that support at least two of the three priorities set out below. This is in addition to the many proposals that we commission which meet only one of these priorities, as well as those that meet none of the three. i. diverse stories and portrayals, covering the nine protected characteristics plus social mobility. ii. diverse production leadership, where “diverse” includes ethnicity, socio-economic background and disability. iii. diverse company leadership, where “diverse” includes ethnicity, socio-economic background and disability.

Please tell us whether, and how, your proposal and/or your company meet any of the three diversity priorities. The definitions supporting each priority can be found here and some FAQs here. Proposals will not be accepted or declined simply because they do or do not support these priorities. What you write in relation to them will be considered alongside all the other factors we evaluate. Proposals that do not directly support the diversity priorities may be commissioned on the strength of meeting other criteria in this brief.

Our commitments will help create an inclusive culture for all, increasing diversity with regard to gender, ethnicity, socio-economic factors and disability, and helping to deliver on the BBC's new 50:20:12 diversity targets for gender, ethnicity and disability representation.

12 of 12