ITV Schools
| ITV Schools | |
|---|---|
| Also known as | Independent Television for Schools and Colleges |
| Genre | Educational |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language(s) |
English Welsh |
| Release | |
| Original network |
ITV (1957-1987) Channel 4/S4C (1987-1993) |
| Picture format | 4:3 |
| Original release | 1957 – 28 June 1993 |
ITV Schools (full name: Independent Television for Schools and Colleges) was the educational television service set up in 1957 by the Independent Television Authority, broadcasting learning programmes for children ages 5 to 18 across ITV-affiliated stations. It was an example of public service broadcasting on a commercial television network (as opposed to the public BBC and their service BBC Schools).
ITV moved its schools programming to Channel 4 in autumn 1987 although ITV continued to produce programmes and the service continued to use the ITV name for another six years. The last ITV Schools programme on Channel 4 aired on Monday 28 June 1993; Channel 4 continued to produce their own schools programmes for many years afterwards.
The service started with a small audience, limited largely to the London area via its weekday franchise-holder Associated-Rediffusion. The service expanded as stations were added to the ITV network, and continued for the next 30 years, broadcasting a schedule of memorable documentaries, drama and entertainment programmes aimed at children between the ages of 5 and 18. These were almost all made by the various companies of the ITV network, mainly the largest ones such as Thames Television, ATV and Granada Television.
Broadcasting hours were for some time regulated by the British Government, however there were some exemptions, for example, educational programmes and sports coverage. The commercial broadcasters therefore reserved their most commercial output for peak viewing hours and used the remainder of their broadcasting hours to put out their contractually obligated programming, conveniently enough, at a time when children were at school. Networked programmes for schools and colleges were mostly made by the "big four" weekday broadcasters Yorkshire, Granada, Thames and ATV, and were screened during the late morning and early afternoon, after which the network would close down until children's programmes commenced in the afternoon.
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