Furness could get its very own radio station after the regulator of England's airwaves announced that a commercial licence would be up for grabs in April 2005.

It is the first time OFCOM has advertised an FM operating permit for the patch which covers Barrow, Dalton-in-Furness, Millom and possibly parts of Ulverston depending on the transmission quality.

A business and charity collective called Barrow Local Radio has already said it will be in the running after two trial broadcasts. The last one was in November 2003 when the fledgling operation raised £1,200 for the Furness Oncology Unit.

Barrow Local Radio chairman, the Furness Building Society chief executive Rob Cairns, said there was a need for a radio voice for Furness.

"I think it's an area of sufficient importance to justify its own radio station. There's a lot of news from the area I don't think gets adequate coverage on TV as we tend to fall between Border and Granada. OK, we have The Bay but that covers a big area - this is purely going to be news and views from this area. We're going to home-in on localness."

Alongside Mr Cairns on the Barrow Radio board are David Stoller, of Barrow's Stollers Furniture World; the boss of Barrow's County Coach Builders, Gareth Jones of Millbrow Service Station in Millom; Dominic Allonby, of E-directory; Adrienne Hodge, of Age Concern; and Peter Koth, of Furness General Hospital Radio.