Penistone FM
Penistone FM is a community radio station based in Penistone, South Yorkshire in the United Kingdom. The station is operated by Penistone Community Radio Limited and was awarded its five-year community broadcast licence in December 2007. Penistone FM launched on Saturday 6 June 2009 at 09:57. In 2013, Ofcom extended the station's licence by a further five years.
 | |
| Broadcast area | Penistone, South Yorkshire |
|---|---|
| Frequency | 95.7 (FM) |
| Slogan | The Heart of the Community |
| Programming | |
| Format | Community Radio |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Penistone Community Radio Limited |
| History | |
First air date | 6 June 2009 |
| Links | |
| Website | Penistone FM |
History
Penistone FM was formed in 2005 and is a not-for-profit community radio station licensed by Ofcom to broadcast to Penistone and the surrounding area on 95.7 FM. The station is staffed by a team of volunteers and receives its income from advertising, donations, fundraising activities and grants – all of which help to pay for the substantial running costs of the station. As a company limited by guarantee (Penistone Community Radio Limited), there are no shareholders and any surplus funds are ploughed back into the station to develop it.
Over 22,000 people live within Penistone FM's broadcast area, with many choosing to listen online. Penistone FM has a number of key commitments and social gain responsibilities; delivering local news, information and supporting local community and voluntary groups in the promotion of their work.
In June 2007, the station applied to the industry regulator Ofcom for an FM community radio licence. The Ofcom Radio Licensing Committee met in December 2007 and awarded Penistone FM a licence to broadcast on the AM waveband (frequency 1475 kHz) due to the lack of available FM frequencies. While the licence award was a major achievement, the station was naturally disappointed with the allocation of an AM frequency.
Not deterred, Penistone FM kept a very close eye on the situation. Soon enough, an FM frequency became available after a community radio station in Chesterfield failed to make it to air. After much persuasion, industry-regulator Ofcom allocated the frequency 95.7 FM.
Penistone FM's four-week test transmissions began on Saturday 9 May 2009 and the station officially launched on Saturday 6 June 2009 at 9:57 am. The first song played during the test transmissions was Let Me Entertain You by Robbie Williams; the last was Europe’s The Final Countdown. The official launch song was Greatest Day by Take That.
The station broadcasts from studios in the new Dransfield Penistone 1 building in Penistone and interacts with the community across the surrounding area with interviews, features, news of local events and updates on the town's redevelopment.
On Air
Penistone FM broadcasts on 95.7 FM and online. The FM signal is broadcast from an eight-metre high mast at Hoylandswaine and although of low power at only 20 watts, the station can be heard widely in and around North, West and South Yorkshire.
Content on the station includes a variety of genres, with more specialist programming on evenings and at weekends, with Country, Brass, Alternative, Soul and Dance being some of the genres covered.