RWSfm 103.3
Encyclopedia
RWSfm 103.3 is the community radio
station for Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk
and the surrounding areas offering music and local information. The station was awarded a community radio licence by Ofcom
in 2010 and began broadcasting on 13th August 2010. Community Radio stations in the UK are required to provide a social gain to the community they serve. RWSfm 103.3 is one of a growing number of such community stations in the UK and currently broadcasts around 70 hours of live programming each week.
under the name of Lions Radio. It was run by Lions Club members and its youth group, the “Leos”. From inception until the mid 1980’s it was compulsory to be a member of the Lions Club or Leos before being able to work on the radio station
. This idea was eventually abandoned and it became possible for anyone interested to join. The Lions Club retained overall control of the station until 1991 when it was decided that in the interests of both the radio station and the Lions Club, ownership and control of the station should be handed over to the team of presenters who had already been running it for some time.
The station had been operating for too long, from a tiny room in what was then the Amenities block. A new purpose built studio complex within the Drummond Centre was commissioned with new equipment, and in June 1992, the then Station Manager, Peter Owen, went on air as the very first Presenter of the brand new hospital radio station, Radio West Suffolk. The station went from strength to strength and early in 1995, studio 2 come on stream, providing essential facilities for training, off-air production work and as a “continuity
” studio.
In June 2000 Radio West Suffolk began broadcasting on 1350AM, at that time only the tenth Hospital Radio
station to do this in the country. In April 2002 the station moved to even bigger studios in the main hospital “Friends Room”, and the decision was also taken to upgrade the stations broadcast equipment at this point. In January 2003, RWS commenced broadcasting 24 hours a day/seven days a week via the Myriad computer playout system, that was purchased with a grant from the National Lottery
. In December 2007 the launch of live streaming on the internet via the RWS website took place taking the station to a new level, worldwide broadcasting.
Various management members also have their own shows on the station.
Community radio
Community radio is a type of radio service, that offers a third model of radio broadcasting beyond commercial broadcasting and public broadcasting. Community stations can serve geographic communities and communities of interest...
station for Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk
Suffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
and the surrounding areas offering music and local information. The station was awarded a community radio licence by Ofcom
Ofcom
Ofcom is the government-approved regulatory authority for the broadcasting and telecommunications industries in the United Kingdom. Ofcom was initially established by the Office of Communications Act 2002. It received its full authority from the Communications Act 2003...
in 2010 and began broadcasting on 13th August 2010. Community Radio stations in the UK are required to provide a social gain to the community they serve. RWSfm 103.3 is one of a growing number of such community stations in the UK and currently broadcasts around 70 hours of live programming each week.
History
The station started out as a hospital radio station, based at the West Suffolk Hospital, in 1974. It was started by the St Edmundsbury Lions Club and broadcastBroadcast
Broadcast or Broadcasting may refer to:* Broadcasting, the transmission of audio and video signals* Broadcast, an individual television program or radio program* Broadcast , an English electronic music band...
under the name of Lions Radio. It was run by Lions Club members and its youth group, the “Leos”. From inception until the mid 1980’s it was compulsory to be a member of the Lions Club or Leos before being able to work on the radio station
Radio station
Radio broadcasting is a one-way wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a common radio format, either in broadcast syndication or simulcast or both...
. This idea was eventually abandoned and it became possible for anyone interested to join. The Lions Club retained overall control of the station until 1991 when it was decided that in the interests of both the radio station and the Lions Club, ownership and control of the station should be handed over to the team of presenters who had already been running it for some time.
The station had been operating for too long, from a tiny room in what was then the Amenities block. A new purpose built studio complex within the Drummond Centre was commissioned with new equipment, and in June 1992, the then Station Manager, Peter Owen, went on air as the very first Presenter of the brand new hospital radio station, Radio West Suffolk. The station went from strength to strength and early in 1995, studio 2 come on stream, providing essential facilities for training, off-air production work and as a “continuity
Continuity
Continuity may refer to:In mathematics:* The opposing concept to discreteness; common examples include:** Continuous probability distribution or random variable in probability and statistics...
” studio.
In June 2000 Radio West Suffolk began broadcasting on 1350AM, at that time only the tenth Hospital Radio
Hospital radio
Hospital radio is a form of audio broadcasting produced specifically for the in-patients of hospitals. It is primarily found in the United Kingdom.-History:...
station to do this in the country. In April 2002 the station moved to even bigger studios in the main hospital “Friends Room”, and the decision was also taken to upgrade the stations broadcast equipment at this point. In January 2003, RWS commenced broadcasting 24 hours a day/seven days a week via the Myriad computer playout system, that was purchased with a grant from the National Lottery
National Lottery (United Kingdom)
The National Lottery is the state-franchised national lottery in the United Kingdom and the Isle of Man.It is operated by Camelot Group, to whom the licence was granted in 1994, 2001 and again in 2007. The lottery is regulated by the National Lottery Commission, and was established by the then...
. In December 2007 the launch of live streaming on the internet via the RWS website took place taking the station to a new level, worldwide broadcasting.
Management
- Grant Greetham (Chairman)
- Brian Stoneham (Vice-Chairman)
- Julie Macleod (Station Manager)
- Sergio Dalmazzo-Auckland (Chief Engineer)
- Andrew Fraser (Head of Production)
- Susan Coombes (Financial Director)
Various management members also have their own shows on the station.
Presenters
- Alex Jacques
- Julia Bolton
- Rob Gwilliam
- John Amos
- Richard Caton
- Gema Stower
- Brian Cave
- Steve Coombes
- Rachel de Roeper
- Andrea Jarman
- Matt Webb
- Ed Smart
- Colin Snazell
- Roy Anson
- Leigh Last