Channel 4 plans new teen drama

From Robin Parker in Broadcast (free registration required).

Channel 4 has ring-fenced £10m to spend on programmes for 10-to 15 year-olds over the next two years - with a flagship drama series set to take centre stage.

The broadcaster plans to commission cross-platform content that is "publicly valuable" across a range of genres. Setting aside the cash is an explicit response to Ofcom's concerns that broadcasters are not sufficiently targeting older children and forms part of C4's plan to emphasise its public service credentials to help secure more public money.

C4 wants a pre-watershed drama for the age group for the second half of 2009. The aim is to combine the cultural impact of the BBC's Grange Hill in its heyday with the slick, multi-media approach of C4's older-skewing Hollyoaks and Skins.