Voice FM is an independent not-for-profit community broadcaster founded in 1982. We secured our full license in May 1986 and are operated by a great team of volunteers. We think of ourselves as “local and vocal” by providing a real alternative to other broadcasters. Each of our programs are unique, with all presenters playing the music they love and enjoy, so you’ll be sure to get a variety of music, news and views with our programs. We inform you about events, news and views in the community. Importantly, we support many local artists, bands and events.
About 99.9 Voice FM – Ballarat Community Radio
Voice FM is Ballarat’s independent not-for-profit community broadcaster that was established in 1982. It secured a full licence in May 1986 and has been operating with a great team of volunteers ever since.
We think of ourselves as providing a real alternative to other broadcasters. Each of our programs is unique, with all our presenters playing their own choice of music that they love and enjoy, so you will be sure to get a wide variety of music, information, news and views from the programs presented.
Of course, it goes without saying that we are foremost in supporting many local artists, bands and events.
The registered name of the co-operative is the Ballarat Community FM Radio Co-operative Limited under the Co-operatives Act (1996), and the licence is classed as a community broadcasting licence under the Broadcast Services Act (1992), servicing a general geographic area, and originally broadcasting as 3BBB.
3BBB is now known as 99.9 Voice FM – Ballarat’s own community radio station – broadcasts 24 hours a day, seven days a week and is proud to be part of our community.
Our main goals and objectives are:
- To offer a genuine opportunity for members of the community to be involved in something unique;
- To involve and inform the community about local events and affairs;
- To provide a genuine alternative to mainstream entertainment;
- Stimulate interest and entertain through a wide variety of programming styles and tastes;
- Build a stronger sense of community;
- Maintain a radio station that can provide opportunities in the areas of education, ethnic, indigenous and current affairs, in addition to local music, sport and news;
- Raise public awareness and foster a general understanding for groups representing the disadvantaged members and residents of Ballarat and the Grampians region;
- Support local volunteer and emergency groups by providing air time for their messages
Currently our ethnic programs are broadcast to the Filipino, German, Greek, Japanese, Mandarin, Thai and Dutch communities. Some of these programs are supported by ethnic grants from the Community Broadcasting Foundation (CBF), which are federally funded to distribute to the community broadcasting sector.
We broadcast an RPH program – The Courier on Air – every week day. This program provides listeners with a print disability access to local news and community information through a reading of Ballarat’s The Courier newspaper.
The program is supported by Vision Australia who were first involved in the training and rostering of volunteers when the program was established in 2003, and today they have a team of more than 40 volunteers.
The licensed listening area extends as far as Talbot - Greendale - Ballan - Meredith - Linton - Beaufort -Talbot.
We commenced streaming to ensure there is coverage to any areas that may have difficulty receiving Voice FM’s signal due to the local topography.
Engagement with a larger audience through streaming on the internet, together with our website (www.voicefm.com.au), has strengthened the opportunity for the station to interact with its local community.
Our Station Profile
Philosophy of Community Radio
The people you live and work with are both the audience and the makers of community radio. The station itself is made up of representatives from across the Ballarat region. Community radio strives to not only represent but to also provide opportunities for growth – to question and encourage debate, promote healthy attitudes, foster links, and communicate new ideas and information. It all starts with you.
