PLANS for a new community radio station in Inverclyde could be set to take a major step forward by the end of this year – with the aim to have people try out the new studio by Christmas.
The project, ‘Inverclyde Inclusive Radio’, aimed at people with additional needs, is one of five which secured funding earlier this year following a ‘Dragon’s Den’ style competition organised by the area’s health and social care partnership (HSCP) and The Lens, an independent charity that supports innovation and collaboration in the third sector.
An update on all five projects is due to go before Inverclyde Council’s social work and social care scrutiny panel later this month.
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On the radio station plans, the latest report states: “Inclusive Radio Inverclyde aims to create a community radio station where the programming is created by people with additional needs for people with additional needs.
“This includes audio descriptive sports commentary, music segments, dementia stories & local information. The team is developing a trial for individuals to experience the studio and provide feedback on necessary adaptations for creating our own content.
“Aspirations are to have several people try out the studio by Christmas 2024, along with demo recordings of potential regular features for our future station.”
The other initiatives which secured a share of £55,000 from the HSCP at an event in the summer are ‘Community First’, a series of pop-up events in the community to link various services together; a diabetes prevention support programme; ‘My Inclusive Digi Support’, which seeks to give service users and tenants with additional needs new electronic devices and access to an app to enable them to have a voice in their care plan; and ‘Little Acorns’, a project to develop a safe space for women in Inverclyde who are fleeing violence.
The update on the Community First initiative reveals that it has already held its first pop-up session, held at the Craigend Resource Centre and focussing on falls, with another session planned for October 25, and adds: “Interest in future pop-ups has grown among various services and teams, prompting plans for an initial test session before expanding participation.
“Potential collaborations with winter mass vaccination clinics in Broomhill are also being explored.”
The Little Acorns progress report says that the project “will offer a place of safety in an environment where women will be supported to heal, recover, and reconnect with themselves and the wider community until they are ready to embrace a tenancy of their own”, and adds: “Development work is in its early stages.”
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The diabetes prevention programme has identified 81 people who are “at high risk of developing the condition”, with the report stating that the team behind the initiative is “finalising the curriculum and will deliver the training”.
A provider has also been identified for the My Inclusive Digi Support scheme.
The full update is due to go before the panel when it meets on October 29.
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