Once upon a time, several members of the local men's shed had an idea of setting up a community radio station.  Two of the members decided to do the research to see what was involved and if it would be viable.  Alan James and Steven McKenna went to visit and meet with the top people behind Athlone Community Radio.  Athlone Community Radio ACR broadcast on both the FM radio band as well as online.  The guys had a grand tour of the new premises as well as the older one and finished with a meeting to discuss all the avenues that must be travelled in order to get a licence for both internet and FM broadcasts.

The meeting left the lads feeling a little overwhelmed and that spark they had was almost extinguished due to the amount of red tape that would need to be overcome with such a venture.  Almost 6 months later they decided  (with the aid of an online internet radio service) to go for it and simply launch an online station. They decided to follow the required criteria and if there were enough public support and interest in having a community station we would then go through the motions and try to get an FM license.  With an FM license, we could reach those older members of our community that do not have or do not understand internet-based radio.

The station does not have dedicated premises but to date, we have four mini studios set up so the respective hosts produce and run their own live shows. Two in Clonmellon, one in Kilskyre and one in Crossakiel.
We are in a great position to produce and broadcast live shows as well as record and edit shows for future broadcasting, so anybody with an interest in doing their own show would need to record it as a podcast then submit it for approval and then for inclusion in our playlist.

We are always looking for volunteers who would be in a position to help us with all aspects of running a community station.  Some of the requirements we would need in order to have a proper radio station setup would be a dedicated secure premises that would house the station. Broadband would also be a requirement as well as wheelchair access to the station and also wheelchair-accessible toilets.  We would also need people with a love of paperwork and filling in forms etc.

Clonmellon Community Radio is a not-for-profit Community Radio Station for Clonmellon village and its environs.  The output of the station is both music and talk-based with an emphasis on local news and community affairs.

If you would like to support us and help your community, why not make a donation to help us realise our goal of providing a great community radio for Clonmellon, and for the Clonmellon diaspora scattered across the world. Simply click on the Donate button on our website.

Thank you to Maria and the staff at Liveradio.ie for helping us promote Clonmellon Community radio.