BBC Young Reporter FAQs

BBC Teach > Young Reporter > Essentials

Please note that as of the 2025/26 school year, the BBC is longer running Young Reporter. This FAQ page has not been updated since 2024 and schools should no longer sign-up or get in touch.

What is the aim of BBC Young Reporter?

BBC Young Reporter aims to educate and inform young people about media industry and working in broadcasting.

How do the young people benefit?

Educators tell us that taking part in BBC Young Reporter supports a range of learning. For example, by helping young people to develop their ability to work in teams, manage their time, conduct research, communicate effectively and think critically. Young people can also develop their media literacy skills and they get the opportunity to do hands-on media production – from writing a story for a website to recording and editing video. It is also a chance for young people to discuss the responsibilities involved in broadcasting their work to a wider audience.

What is there to do as part of BBC Young Reporter?

There’s plenty to do when you’re registered for BBC Young Reporter:

• We’ll invite you to attend BBC events in your area guaranteed to be educational, informative and most importantly, fun!
• Get access to resources and lesson plans (linked to a range of subject curriculums) that help teach journalistic and technical skills directly from BBC staff.

Who can take part in BBC Young Reporter?

The project is for young people aged 11-18 that are currently in school or college, from a youth group or alternative education including home schools. Each school, youth group or home school needs at least one teacher, staff member, youth worker or parent to act as a liaison for the young people.

As per the BBC Safeguarding Policy we do not liaise with young people (under 18) directly.

Can we take part if we're not in the UK?

The BBC is funded by a licence fee paid for by the British public and the money that funds BBC Young Reporter comes from this. We therefore primarily serve the UK population and audience.

How many young people do I need to take part?

This is entirely up to you. Some schools run activities with a whole year group, others with a class, and some have a reporting team or an after-school club. Youth groups and alternative provision may work with a number of groups out of school hours. Home schooled students, whether that’s through an official council group or on their own (with a parent) can also take part.

What equipment do we need?

That will depend on what you want to do while you’re taking part in BBC Young Reporter. There are many different ways to create reports and none of them require the latest, most expensive equipment. High quality video and audio reporting can be done with most smartphones or tablets and there are plenty of free apps to help you do this. The BBC is unable to supply any equipment or funding for equipment.

What help is available to me, the leader of the project?

We encourage you to use the series of resources and lesson plans on this website to help young people develop their journalistic skills. Our resources include videos from BBC presenters that offer some helpful tips and insights.

What safeguarding measures does the BBC have in place?

The BBC Young Reporter team takes safeguarding very seriously. All BBC Young Reporter staff and BBC staff mentors have an up-to-date basic criminal record check (DBS check) and undertake training in accordance with the BBC’s guidelines on child protection. As part of these guidelines we must request that BBC staff are accompanied during visits and should never be left alone with students. You must ensure that all young people who appear in news reports have parental permission to take part in the project. You can download this form from our website. You must ensure that only first names of young people (anyone under 18) are displayed or spoken on any reports.

Can we visit the BBC?

We regret that we cannot arrange special visits to the BBC for schools or groups. You can find information about BBC Tours and how to be an audience member for shows here.

Will someone from the BBC visit us?

When signing up to BBC Young Reporter you can request a BBC Young Reporter Ambassador to support you and the young people taking part with your plans for the project. We actively recruit BBC members of staff from all over the country to support the schools or youth groups signing up to BBC Young Reporter. It’s a proper volunteering scheme supported by all areas of the BBC in the United Kingdom. A BBC Young Reporter Ambassador could come from any part of the BBC, not just broadcast journalism. BBC Young Reporter Ambassadors are subject to availability and we cannot guarantee they will be able to visit you in person - some may only be able to support you through email, phone or video calls.

Why does the BBC run BBC Young Reporter?

BBC Young Reporter supports two of the BBC Charter's pledges:

• To provide impartial news and information to help people understand and engage with the world around them.
• To support learning for people of all ages: the BBC should help everyone learn about different subjects in ways they will find accessible, engaging, inspiring and challenging. The BBC should provide specialist educational content to help support learning for children and teenagers across the United Kingdom. It should encourage people to explore new subjects and participate in new activities through partnerships with educational, sporting and cultural institutions.

We do this by:

• engaging young people with news and current affairs;
• sharing some of the public service values behind content creation, such as fairness, accuracy and impartiality, since so many young people are content creators and distributors.