Ofcom awards four new community radio licences

12 Dec 2019 03:21 PM

Ofcom yesterday announced the award of four new community radio licences in England, Scotland and Wales.

The new stations will serve communities in Shaftesbury, Dorset in England; Shotts in Lanarkshire, Scotland; Merthyr Tydfil in South Wales; and Towyn, Conwy, in North Wales.

Community radio services are provided on a not-for-profit basis, focusing on the delivery of specific social benefits to a particular area or community of interest.

More than 290 community radio stations are currently on air.

The four new community radio licences have been awarded to:

Alfred (Alfred Radio Limited), Shaftesbury

Contact name: Keri Jones

Website: www.thisisalfred.com

Alfred will be run by volunteers and is aimed at older listeners. It will provide a service for the community of Shaftesbury and he surrounding rural area.

Listen Lanarkshire (Getting Better Together Limited), Shotts in Lanarkshire

Contact name: Iain Whyte

Website: www.listenlanarkshire.com

Listen Lanarkshire will work with local partners including schools, youth groups and sports clubs. It will serve the ex-mining communities of Shotts and surrounding villages.

Merthyr Radio (The 3Gs Development Trust), Merthyr Tydfil County Borough

Contact name: Melvyn Jones

Website: www.3gs.org.uk

Merthyr Radio will focus on life in the Merthyr area and will work with local businesses. It will provide an inclusive local radio service for people in the Merthyr Tydfil County Borough area.

Sound Radio (Sound Radio Limited), Towyn, Kimmel Bay, Abergele and Rhyl

Contact name: Craig Kennealey

Website: www.soundradio.wales

Sound Radio will run a locally-focussed service which will include some Welsh language programmes. It is for the communities of Kinmel Bay & Towyn, Abergele, Rhyl and surrounding towns and villages in the Vale of Clwyd.

The licences are awarded for a five-year period. A statement setting out the main determining factors for the award of the licences above can be found on the Ofcom website.

Notes to Editors

1. In addition to the licence awards detailed above, Ofcom considered two further applications, but decided not to award a licence to the following:

• Pulse Radio (Glan Clwyd AM Ltd), Rhyl and Prestatyn, Denbighshire
• Voice of the Community (Clwyd Community Broadcasting Ltd), St Asaph, Denbighshire

2. Ofcom decided not to consider applications from the following:

• Phase Radio (Wales), Prestatyn, Meliden, Rhuddlan and Rhyl, Denbighshire
• ME2U Community Radio, Croydon