BBC Annual Report and Accounts 2008/09

The BBC's six public purposes – built on our principles to ‘inform, educate and entertain' – underpin all that we do, and help us to focus on offering everyone in the UK memorable and distinctive content and services that enrich their lives. Some highlights from this year included:

Citizenship

The BBC has a worldwide reputation for its reportage and analysis of the world we live in. Our UK-wide, international, national and local channels and services cover a wide range of stories tailored for a diverse range of users. This year we led the agenda on the banking crisis and recession, and took Money Matters advice roadshow to Manchester to explain the impact of the credit crunch to individuals there. Others are planned.

Learning

The BBC promotes and supports formal and informal education for children, teenagers and adults across television, radio and the web. People with a passion to learn – the school student needing online revision help with Bitesize or the young man wanting to brush up on his Francis Bacon so he can impress on a big date – will find engaging, entertaining and challenging content at the BBC. Our tie-up with Tate Britain on Francis Bacon last year is, in fact, just one of a range of creative partnerships that is taking existing content to new audiences.

Creativity

The BBC offer includes unique and innovative content that entertains and engages audiences. Live music is key to our music offer – from Elbow on Radio 2 to hip hop on BBC 1Xtra. We commemorated the 250th anniversary of the death of Handel with a week of in-depth programming: highlights included Radio 3's Messiah from Westminster Abbey. And we marked the 250th anniversary of the birth of Robert Burns with new recordings of some of his works. We will be doing more poetry in the year ahead.

Community

The UK is an incredibly diverse place, and we aim to reflect this diversity at national, regional and local levels. We offer services in English, Scottish Gaelic and Welsh, and programmes in over 30 languages from Bengali to Urdu. For communities united more by an enthusiasm than a geographical or linguistic heritage, we offer output like Antiques Roadshow and Songs Of Praise, and websites where people can meet and chat like The Archers' ‘Mustardland'. Not to mention Radio 5 Live for all sports fans, and local and nations radio for Saturday football commentary.

Global

Our global news services provide independent and internationally respected news and analysis to audiences around the world, covering key stories like the Mumbai terrorist attacks and the Israel/Gaza conflict. On a lighter note, Radio 2 covered major music festivals like Glastonbury and the best international artists like Burt Bacharach at Electric Proms and U2. BBC Worldwide launched a Spanish language CBeebies, taking the best of UK content to new audiences.

Digital

Digital switchover is now under way in the UK, with the whole UK due to be fully converted by 2012. BBC Online is used by 22 million each week, and 10 million now listen to our radio services via digital platforms. ‘Extending the benefits of digital to all' means we support the people who are last to adopt new technology, as well as the first. Up to seven million people aged 75 or over, disabled or living in care homes will be offered help to switch to digital TV between now and 2012.