God USEd US TO HELP BIRTH CHRISTIAN MEDIA IN THE UK

The Christian Broadcasting Council of the United Kingdom dates back to 1986 when the charity was founded to help develop Christian media in our nation.  As an umbrella body for Christian media, we  started by laying a foundation of prayer and intercession while Christian programming was in its infancy. Since then we have seen God raise up new networks in extraordinary ways.

The original CBC charitable objective was to “stimulate and promote the knowledge of the Christian faith and the propagation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ by means of radio and television broadcasting; through the exhibition of films, videos and DVDs, through the distribution of cassettes and records and via the printed word.”

Though the means have changed with advances in technology, the CBC mission remains to: “Promote the proclamation of the Christian Gospel through the electronic media. Organising conferences and giving awards for excellence in broadcasting and related matters. Support of independent Christian broadcasters. Communication with Ofcom and other Government related agencies.”

Since the CBC started, the UK has seen the rapid development of Christian TV, radio and many new and exciting online opportunities and the CBC has helped to facilitate this. In our prime, we hosted high profile awards ceremonies to recognise high quality Christian programming from both Christian and secular broadcasters. 

The last awards banquet was held in 2012 and unfortunately CBC’s role has diminished in recent years. Our former chairperson, Canon Ian Goodling passed away in 2020 and we have been largely dormant except for ongoing prayer led by our current chair, Olave Snelling. During this period the charity has been administered by Cornerstone Vision on a pro bono basis to comply with Charity Commission requirements.

However, our passion for media has never waned and we continue to have high profile patrons and trustees who see the increasing need for an effective advocacy body.  We believe it is a new season for the organisation and with fresh impetus and the support of the Christian community we can bring more and more  believers together to fulfil the Great Commission via media.