Radio Hafren shuts down

The Severn Valley’s local radio station, Radio Hafren, has gone out of business.

The station, located in Newtown's Back Lane car park and originally founded as Radio Maldwyn The Magic 756 back in the early 1990’s, was rebranded four years ago under new owners.

But last night they conceded defeat, saying that they were unable to generate enough advertising revenue.

A statement released said: “It is with great regret that we must announce that Radio Hafren has ceased trading with immediate effect.

“Despite creating a popular station to serve communities across Mid Wales and the Borders, over the past four years we have consistently been unable to generate enough advertising revenue to cover the station’s operating costs and with no indication that this situation is likely to change in the foreseeable future, the directors have taken the decision that they can no longer maintain the service.

“The directors would like to thank all our staff, advertisers and listeners for their support over the last few years.”

It is the latest in a line of issues for the radio station which was launched as a community radio station in the early 1990s with support from the then Montgomeryshire District Council and Development Board for Rural Wales.

It went through several station managers and a number of financial issues before being taken over by new owners four years ago.

It is thought the station's Medium Wave frequency was a problem for the station with today's listeners wanting good quality audio, such as DAB or online.

The station did stream via the web and launched an FM service last year in a bid to revive its audience figures.

It is not known if anyone else will come in to rescue the station and take over the licence.