FURNESS'S hospice and a Barrow radio station are working together to ‘reach new audiences’.

St Mary’s Hospice in Ulverston and CandoFM have teamed up to bring community radio to the residents of Ulverston and the surrounding area.

An aerial has been installed in the hospice grounds, allowing for a new broadcast on new frequency 107.3 FM, linking with the already established broadcast 106.3 FM in Barrow.

The brand new station in Ulverston went live for the first time yesterday.

CandoFM launched as a community radio station in October 2018, and since then more than 50 volunteers have helped to produce and present radio shows.

The station is the current holder of the LoveBarrow 'Community-Focussed Business of the Year' award and the High Sheriff of Cumbria Award

Station manager Jonny Williams said “This is a huge opportunity to link the communities of Ulverston and Barrow, and across the whole Furness region.

“Our team of volunteers are very excited to welcome new presenters and we’ve already had enthusiastic enquiries from the Ulverston community about getting involved.

“CandoFM offers a unique media platform in the region and really is ‘the voice of the community’.”

St Mary’s Hospice is the latest charity to partner with the station, having developed close links over the past two years.

The hospice will shortly be hosting its own dedicated hour.

They join the Furness Rotary Clubs, Dignity in Dementia and the Furness Community of Churches who all host their dedicated hour-long shows on the station.

Karl Connor, who leads on community engagement for St Mary’s Hospice, said: “We’re delighted to have partnered with Jonny and the team at CandoFM – they’ve always been supportive in promoting out fundraising activity.

“We’re really keen to make sure that we can speak to as many people in Furness and South Lakes about the services the hospice provides, so that they know we are here and can support them.

“Working with a community radio station like CandoFM will help us to reach new audiences, and you can expect to hear even more from us on the air.”

As well as being available on 107.3FM, the station is also available to listen to online.

To listen live or to find out more about the radio’s scheduled shows, visit the CandoFM website here.

Learn more about St Mary’s Hospice here.