Jade Botterill MP Visits Emley Moor

Ossett and Denby Dale MP goes behind the scenes at our Yorkshire landmark site

Arqiva, the UK’s leading broadcast and communications infrastructure provider, recently welcomed Jade Botterill, Member of Parliament for Ossett and Denby Dale, to the iconic Emley Moor transmitting station.

Emley Moor is not only a major part of Yorkshire’s local heritage, towering over the landscape since 1969, but the facility also plays a vital role in supporting TV, radio and smart utilities services for organisations and millions of people across the UK.

During her visit, Ms Botterill received an in-depth look at the technology behind the tower’s operations. The visit offered insight into how Arqiva maintains and manages its network of approximately 1,500  masts and towers, which together deliver the vast majority  of the UK’s broadcast television and radio  services.

The tour also highlighted the strategic importance of Emley Moor and the wider transmission infrastructure as part of the UK’s national resilience. The network ensures that vital information continues to be shared with the public during times of emergency and remains a cornerstone of national communication.

This has been the best visit since I became an MP. Whenever I am on the M62 or M1 as soon as I see Emley Moor I know I’m home.

I have been inside it today which was incredible – it serves 4.5 million people and it was such a privilege to visit today. I serve a very rural constituency, you can’t even get from one side to the other on public transport and there’s a lot of people who rely on this mast to watch their TV and we need to make sure we’re preserving that for people for as long as we possibly can. 

Jade Botterill MP

We were delighted to welcome Jade Botterill MP and give her an introduction to what we do here at Emley Moor. 

It’s one of the most well-known landmarks in the region and its significance cannot be underestimated. Without it, around 4.5 million viewers and listeners would struggle to access important information and entertainment through their TVs and radios. 

The visit was a great opportunity to show Ms Botterill the scale and complexities of our operations which support our customers in the broadcast and utilities industries. I think she took a great deal away from her visit.

Mark Steele, Chief of Operations at Arqiva