Spark Sunderland
Spark Sunderland is a University of Sunderland-affiliated community radio station broadcasting on 107FM across Sunderland and online globally, serving students and local residents with music, news, sport, entertainment, and podcast content, funded primarily by the university.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2009
- HeadquartersSunderland, United Kingdom
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Spark Sunderland does
Spark Sunderland is a community radio station owned and operated by the University of Sunderland, broadcasting on 107FM across the Sunderland area in North East England. Founded in 2009 and headquartered at The David Puttnam Media Centre on the university's Sir Tom Cowie Campus at St Peters, the station is licensed by Ofcom for FM broadcasting and by PRS for Music for copyrighted music playback. It produces a full weekly programming schedule spanning music shows, news, sports, entertainment coverage, and specialist shows, supplemented by an on-demand podcast portfolio (including Getting To Know You, Sparkademics, Spark Reunited, The CineClub Podcast, The Toolbox, and Word on Wearside), a Listen Again catch-up service, curated playlists, and editorial content covering film, gaming, music, theatre, and showbiz. The station was awarded UK Student Radio Station of the Year in 2025 by the Student Radio Awards.
The station's distribution stack combines FM broadcast with global online streaming via its website and the RadioPlayer cloud platform, plus mobile access through dedicated iOS/Android applications and the TuneIn app on mobile and smart speakers. Underlying technology is conventional broadcast infrastructure with cloud-based streaming and standard content management for the website and podcast feeds; no proprietary technical platform is described. The business model is dual: a primary recurring funding stream from the University of Sunderland as an affiliated student media outlet, supplemented by an advertising and sponsorship channel targeting local businesses seeking access to a youth audience (contact: [email protected]). The station's go-to-market is community-led, serving University of Sunderland students as the primary audience segment and Sunderland residents as a secondary segment, with content partnerships extending its reach into local cultural institutions such as Sunderland Empire Theatre and Fashion North. Revenue figures are not publicly disclosed and the headcount band is 51-100.
Spark Sunderland firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Spark Sunderland
- Legal name
- Spark Sunderland
- Website
- https://sparksunderland.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2009
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- Spark Sunderland is a University of Sunderland-affiliated community radio station broadcasting on 107FM across Sunderland and online globally, serving students and local residents with music, news, sport, entertainment, and podcast content, funded primarily by the university.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Spark Sunderland industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Community Radio Broadcasting
- NAICS
- Radio Broadcasting Stations (516110), Radio Broadcasting Stations (51611)
- SIC
- Radio Broadcasting Stations (4832)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Public/Community Local Stations (PBS Member Stations, Community Radio, LPFM) (MPABACAG)
Keywords
Where Spark Sunderland is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Sunderland
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
Spark Sunderland business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- University Funding: Primary funding from University of Sunderland as an affiliated student media station operating from The David Puttnam Media Centre
- Advertising and Sponsorship: The station offers advertising and sponsorship opportunities to businesses and organisations interested in reaching a youth audience in Sunderland. Contact for advertising is [email protected]
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels6 records
Spark Sunderland product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Spark Sunderland is a community radio station affiliated with the University of Sunderland that broadcasts live radio programming on 107FM across Sunderland, online via its website and RadioPlayer, and through mobile apps and TuneIn. The station produces a full weekly schedule of music shows, news, sports, entertainment, and speech programming, supplemented by on-demand podcasts and a Listen Again catch-up service. Content is primarily created by University of Sunderland students and covers local, regional, and national topics with a focus on the Sunderland and North East England area.
Product overview
Spark Sunderland is a community radio station operated by the University of Sunderland, broadcasting on 107FM across Sunderland with online streaming capabilities. The station offers a multi-platform radio experience combining live FM broadcasting with online streaming via RadioPlayer and mobile access through dedicated apps and TuneIn. The core product portfolio includes live radio programming (music shows, news, sports, entertainment), on-demand podcast content (Sparkademics, CineClub, Word on Wearside, and others), catch-up Listen Again services, curated playlists, and news/entertainment journalism covering local, regional, and national topics. Programming spans diverse content categories including specialist music shows, speech programming, sports coverage, and entertainment reviews.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Spark Radio Broadcasting Live community radio station broadcasting on 107FM across Sunderland, online via RadioPlayer, and through mobile apps and TuneIn, providing music shows, news, sports, entertainment, and speech programming for Sunderland residents and University of Sunderland students.
- Podcast Productions On-demand podcast programming including Getting To Know You, Sparkademics, Spark Reunited, The CineClub Podcast, The Toolbox, and Word on Wearside, available through the station website and podcast platforms.
- Listen Again Service Catch-up streaming service that allows listeners to access previously broadcast Spark radio shows and content on demand via the station website.
- Spark Playlist Curated music playlist featuring tracks played on the station, including local Sunderland and North East music and specialist music programming across multiple genres.
- Spark Mobile Apps Mobile listening applications for iOS and Android devices, also accessible via the RadioPlayer and TuneIn apps on mobile and smart speakers, enabling listeners to tune into Spark Sunderland anywhere.
Companies that use Spark Sunderland
Customer profileNamed customers2 records
Segments2 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Spark Sunderland technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration2 records
Spark Sunderland partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- University of SunderlandcoreSpark Sunderland is an affiliated student radio station of the University of Sunderland, operating from The David Puttnam Media Centre at the Sir Tom Cowie Campus at St Peters. The station receives institutional support and funding from the university and provides media training opportunities for students.
- OfcomcoreBroadcasting regulator that licenses Spark Sunderland to operate as a radio station. The station is licensed by Ofcom for FM broadcasting.
- PRS for MusiccorePerformance rights organization that licenses Spark Sunderland to broadcast music content. The station pays licensing fees to PRS for Music to play copyrighted music.
- RadioPlayercoreRadioPlayer is a cloud-based platform used by Spark Sunderland for online radio streaming. The station uses RadioPlayer for its popup player and online broadcast functionality.
- Fashion NorthminorFashion North is referenced as a linked partner on Spark Sunderland's website, suggesting potential cross-promotion or marketing collaboration.
- Sunderland Empire TheatreminorSpark Sunderland provides entertainment reviews and coverage of shows at Sunderland Empire Theatre, including reviews of Waitress, The Bodyguard, The Choir of Man, Mean Girls, and Sleeping Beauty pantomime.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Spark Sunderland competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- URN (University Radio Nottingham): URN is a UK student radio station based at the University of Nottingham, broadcasting on 1350AM and online. It is the closest direct comparable to Spark Sunderland: similar student-led, university-affiliated, multi-platform model competing for student radio awards and serving a similar audience demographic.
- Leeds Student Radio (LSR): Leeds Student Radio is a university-affiliated student radio station broadcasting online and on FM to the Leeds student community. Like Spark, it produces news, music, and entertainment programming through a student-led team and is a regular competitor at the Student Radio Awards.
- Bailrigg FM (Lancaster University): Bailrigg FM is the student radio station of Lancaster University, broadcasting to the Lancaster campus and online. It is directly comparable in operating model, audience, content mix, and university affiliation to Spark Sunderland.
- CUR1350 (Cambridge University Radio): CUR1350 is the student-run radio station of the University of Cambridge, broadcasting on 1350AM and online. It shares Spark's student-driven operating model, multi-platform distribution, and award-circuit positioning.
- Fly FM (Nottingham Trent University): Fly FM is the Nottingham Trent University student radio station broadcasting to Nottingham on FM and online. Comparable to Spark in its university affiliation, youth audience targeting, and Student Radio Awards participation.
- Radio Reverb: Radio Reverb is a Brighton-based community radio station broadcasting on 97.2FM and online. It is comparable to Spark as a licensed UK community radio station with volunteer-led programming, multi-platform distribution, and PRS/Ofcom licensing.
- ALL FM: ALL FM is a licensed community radio station in Manchester broadcasting on 96.9FM. It mirrors Spark's community-licensed, volunteer-driven operating model and its multi-platform streaming approach.
Broad incumbents
- BBC Radio Newcastle: BBC Radio Newcastle is the BBC's local radio service for Tyne and Wear, including Sunderland. It is a broad incumbent competing with Spark for the same North East audience and local advertising share, but operates at a national-public-broadcaster scale with vastly greater resources.
- Nation Broadcasting: Nation Broadcasting is a UK commercial radio group operating local FM stations across the country. It is comparable to Spark as a multi-station local broadcaster but operates at portfolio scale with substantially greater resources, programming investment, and sales infrastructure.
Regional players
- Sun FM (Sunderland): Sun FM is a commercial local radio station serving Sunderland and South Tyneside. It is directly comparable to Spark by virtue of sharing the same local broadcast market and audience, but competes as a commercial operator with a different business model.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Spark Sunderland social profiles
Digital presenceSpark Sunderland compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
Spark Sunderland financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Spark Sunderland leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Spark Sunderland funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Spark Sunderland M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Spark Sunderland
What does Spark Sunderland do?
Spark Sunderland is a community radio station affiliated with the University of Sunderland that broadcasts live radio programming on 107FM across Sunderland, online via its website and RadioPlayer, and through mobile apps and TuneIn. The station produces a full weekly schedule of music shows, news, sports, entertainment, and speech programming, supplemented by on-demand podcasts and a Listen Again catch-up service. Content is primarily created by University of Sunderland students and covers local, regional, and national topics with a focus on the Sunderland and North East England area.
Is Spark Sunderland a public or private company?
Spark Sunderland is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was Spark Sunderland founded?
Spark Sunderland was founded in 2009. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is Spark Sunderland based?
Spark Sunderland is headquartered in Sunderland, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does Spark Sunderland make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. University Funding is the primary driver. The others are advertising and Sponsorship.
Who are Spark Sunderland's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are URN (University Radio Nottingham), Leeds Student Radio (LSR), Bailrigg FM (Lancaster University), CUR1350 (Cambridge University Radio), Fly FM (Nottingham Trent University), Radio Reverb and ALL FM. Broad incumbents are BBC Radio Newcastle and Nation Broadcasting. Sun FM (Sunderland) is listed as a regional player.
Does Spark Sunderland have an API?
No public API is recorded for Spark Sunderland.
What industry is Spark Sunderland in?
Spark Sunderland's product category is Community Radio Broadcasting. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPABACAG, Public/Community Local Stations (PBS Member Stations, Community Radio, LPFM). Its NAICS code is 516110 and its SIC code is 4832.