Crescent Radio

Crescent Radio is a grassroots community broadcaster in Rochdale. It began with seasonal broadcasts in 1999 and developed into a service using English and other community languages. Its work combines radio programmes with practical community activity, welcoming participation from local people across different religious and cultural backgrounds.

Health and wellbeing are recurring interests, with professionals contributing information for audiences who may be harder to reach through other services. The organisation has also supported digital inclusion for older residents. These activities sit alongside its music, conversation and religious programmes, linking the broadcast with needs identified within the local community.

Kashmiri Lives follows migration, life in Britain and experiences of growing up in Greater Manchester, preserving fuller interviews alongside edited radio shows. Local Legends introduces figures such as Anwar Ditta, Surinder Biant and Azeem Amir, while the St Johns podcast adds another strand of local heritage. The station also carries Democracy Now! and publishes prayer information for Rochdale mosques. These different elements bring personal memory, international discussion and everyday religious life into the same community project.

Heritage projects document Kashmiri, East African and Punjabi experiences through interviews and recorded personal stories. A platform for Spanish-speaking residents adds another perspective to this work. Volunteers can take part in presentation or production with training available, helping the station reflect Rochdale through the voices and histories of people who live there.