About Us.........

Station Profile

2CHR (Central Hunter Radio) is a community radio station based in the Hunter Valley, New South Wales, Australia.

The station serves as voice media for the community of the Central Hunter area. It is operated completely by volunteers from the non-profit organisation - Central Hunter Community Broadcasters Inc.

2CHR was formed in 2000 through the amalgamation of two aspirant stations: Cessnock Community Radio (CKRFM) and Radio Maitland (RMFM).

Training courses in basic radio skills for would be presenters are provided. Other volunteers receive training in production, office and computer skills.

Sponsorship is welcomed and actively sought as a fundraising medium for this non-profit local media outlet.

Our program is driven by the desires and needs of our communities of Maitland and Cessnock.  The locals tell us what they want to hear on their community radio station. As well as a range of music, this includes interviews with local people, local news and weather, sports updates & regular daily community announcements.

A Community Station has enormous advantages over a national or commercial station. It provides a service to meet the needs of the local community rather than presenting programs aimed at producing profits for its shareholders.

The whole community therefore benefits rather than just one particular sector. With over 200 Community Stations already operating around Australia, Community Radio has become the largest sector of the broadcast industry.

Our Goal

To inform and entertain the community of the Central Hunter district through the broadcast of music, entertainment and pertinent local and outside information.

History

Originally, Cessnock Community Radio (CKRFM) was formed in the early 1990's to fill a void left by the defunct commercial station, 2CK.  Then, in the mid 1990s, Radio Maitland (RMFM) came into being.  

Both stations were broadcasting on temporary licences and bidding for the one available full time broadcast licence.   After some years of this, it was decided that the best way to get a full time community radio station in the area would be to amalgamate into a single station covering the whole district.    Many meetings were held and the two associations were combined into Central Hunter Community Broadcasters Inc., broadcasting as 2CHR.   Combining the two stations provided two studios and the ability to broadcast from either Maitland or Cessnock.

In early 2000 Central Hunter Radio (2CHR) was granted a full time licence and continued to broadcast from both Maitland and Cessnock studios.    However, in 2001 funding issues made it difficult to operate both studios.    Operations have been limited to the Cessnock site until two premises again become viable.

The current studios are centrally located in the old School of Arts building on the corner of Maitland Rd. and Vincent St. in Cessnock. The transmitter is situated on Bimbadeen mountain to the west of Cessnock.

Amalgamating the two stations into a new one provided access to a much larger audience. A combined community of approximately 100,000 people can now be reached and serviced by the one larger organisation.

Technical Information

Broadcast Frequency: 96.5 MHz
Power: 2KW Directional
Transmitter Location: Bimbadeen, NSW, Australia
Studio Location: School of Arts, 2 Vincent St., Cessnock, NSW, Australia

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