New Radio Station For East Yorkshire

Vixen Broadcasting Ltd. has received the best start possible to the New Year, with the award of a Community Radio licence by the radio regulator, OFCOM.

After four and half years of short-term trial broadcasts under the name, “Vixen 87”, the group has finally been given the go-ahead to set-up a permanent service for an initial 5 year period. Although the station will still be on the FM/VHF waveband, the frequency will change from the traditional 87.9, as this is reserved for trial broadcasts.

The licence is to provide a localised radio service to Market Weighton, Holme-Upon-Spalding Moor and Pocklington. Although it is hoped that the station will cover an area incorporating, South Cave, Howden, Gilberdyke, Newport, and Middleton-On-The-Wolds.

Financed mainly by grant funding, and local advertising & sponsorship, the station will continue to be run by volunteers, as the general operating costs of a radio station are high, without the inclusion of staff wages.

From listener research carried out over the 9 trial broadcasts and in order to maintain a high standard of output with the available voluntary workforce, the station will initially be providing live weekend programming, with a weekday daytime rolling local information, live news and classic “Vixen style” music service, that it’s listeners know and love. This will be supplemented by evening specialist niche programmes as per the trial broadcasts, giving its listeners a full 24 hours-a-day service from Day 1.

A great deal of new engineering and administrative work will need to be carried out before the station commences full-time broadcasting. As such, the launch date has not been finalised, but is expected to be towards the end of the year or early 2009.

Vixen Broadcasting Ltd. will be looking to recruit volunteers from all age ranges to train to work on its sports, news, and community reporting features, and to help with backroom administrative tasks such as fundraising and advertising. The group also welcomes input from all local communities who wish to publicise their events and activities.

More information can be found on their website www.vixen87.co.uk,
e-mail: studio@vixen87.co.uk
or write to:
Vixen Broadcasting Ltd. Market Weighton. YO43 3AN.