Radio Activities

WCRT is Wolverhampton Community Radio Training. On this page you will discover what we do today. If you'd like to see our history and find out about things we've been doing previously, click WCRT History on the left hand menu.

101.8 WCR FM - Wolverhampton City Radio

WCRT operates WCR FM - Wolverhampton's first dedicated Citywide Community Radio Station. For more information on what's on-air, please go to WCRFM.com.

Volunteering At WCRT / Training Courses

Volunteer roles provide students and local people with a chance to learn professional-level skills in all areas of media production. They can learn to make documentaries or mix live music. They can find out how the record industry works with radio stations and can develop interview skills. Learning these things as a volunteer also allows volunteers to develop the best skill of all: their own sense of inner motivation and discipline and confidence in a working environment.

The core staff will always treat Volunteer Members with the same high expectations they would have of paid workers under their supervision. Both the Staff and the Volunteer should be careful to be specific about jobs and deadlines so that volunteers can limit their work to the things they have the time and desire to do. Training sessions are pre-arranged and usually last around 2 hours each with addition practice sessions available as often as the volunteer wishes.

Programmes are designed with Volunteers in mind, so that people can come in and learn how to put a radio show together, it really is that simple in terms of getting involved. All you need is an open mind, enthusiasm, and a bit of commitment (an unquenchable journalistic craving for tea often helps too!). Many shows are predominantly speech based and therefore training focuses on developing writing, research, and journalistic skills in the individual, plus considerable scope within the engineering and presentation side too.

There are opportunities to learn about every aspect of producing a radio programme, and more importantly, finding your own areas of skill. Some people find that they really enjoy the technical side, others get a kick out of writing, or interviewing. Overall it’s a valuable chance to build up skills on a real working radio station, within a company that has helped many volunteers to obtain jobs at the BBC or elsewhere in the broadcasting industry.

For more information or to pick up a volunteer application form - pop in to our offices, give us a call or write to us (details in the 'Contact' section of this site).

WCRT UK Online Centre

The WCRT UK Online Centre (‘WCRT Centre’) provides a useful introduction to computing with the added bonus of digital multimedia. The facilities consist of top-spec computers with full multimedia capabilities, such as sound editing and CD writing.

The WCRT Centre offers additional radio production training, utilising our studio facilities which include full broadcast studios, portable recording equipment and digital editing systems. The UK Online service is aimed at those with none or very little computing experience and those with an interest in digital media, radio, sound editing and presentations.

WCRT works alongside employment groups such as Action for Employment (A4e) to give long-term unemployed people the key computing skills to get back into work. We take a hands on approach to learning, as we find that confidence is a key factor in learning computing skills. The WCRT Centre is open for drop-in sessions during office hours – if facilities are available and members are encouraged to take advantage of this.

For more information - pop in to see us, or give us a call to arrange a tour.

The Wolverhampton Community Magazine Programme on BBC WM

From 1989 - 2008, as a significant output of its training programme WCRT (and its predecessor the WCRA – Wolverhampton Community Radio Association) produced a weekly ‘Wolverhampton Community Magazine’ programme on BBC Radio WM. The partnership with BBC WM was developed in 1989 with the far sighted and innovative head of "Radio WM" (as the station was known then), Tony Inchley.

The nature of the programme was to report on issues, events and activities relating to Wolverhampton. Essentially it was a programme produced by the community for the community. When it came to an end in 2008 the programme was the second longest running programme on BBC WM, and remains the only example of a community radio group regularly broadcasting on the BBC at the time.

Over the years WCRT has established extensive links with the community, representing a wide variety of social groups, all of which were frequently represented and highlighted on the programme. Differing, however, from the majority of news-based programming on radio, the Wolverhampton Community Magazine placed a positive emphasis on events and activities, highlighting good news stories and informing the listener of how a project, scheme or activity will benefit the community.

The chief goal has always been to bring quality and diversity to the radio medium, from providing training in basic radio skills to giving local people access to radio. Every year dozens of local organisations of all types use us to spread information. This doesn’t mean that it’s all jumble sales and Church fetes; Wolverhampton is a vibrant town, with a surprisingly varied and interesting number of organisations making their home in the area. The district is home to MENSA, for instance, and ‘The National Comedy Writers Association of Great Britain’, to mention only two examples. Amongst the shows for the year 2000, we covered the ‘Media Industry Seminars’ being organised by the University of Wolverhampton, with interviews with Sir Jeremy Isaacs, Michael Grade, and the Head of the Independent Television Commission. Whilst on the entertainment side we received visits from Kate O’Mara, Ian Lavender and Leslie Nielsen (yes, the Leslie Nielsen from ‘Airplane’...)

Originally the programme was produced in studios in Queen Street, Wolverhampton (a few doors down from the Express & Star). These days, it comes direct from ours Headquarters at the Newhampton Arts Centre.