Switch Radio

Switch Radio is a Birmingham community station with its base in Castle Vale and a particular connection to the north-east of the city. Operating since 2010, it combines a broad popular-music selection with local news, traffic, sport and events. Its local music policy gives Birmingham and Midlands artists a platform alongside more widely recognised performers, making the regional scene part of the station's musical identity.

The Midlands Hour, presented by Jack Cole, is a clear expression of that approach. Jim Garrett's The Sound Lab introduces emerging artists through tracks and interviews, while Ashlee Elizabeth Lolo presents Unplugged. These programmes provide different routes into new music, from the immediate region to artists developing a wider audience. Daytime presenters include Andy Noax, Scott Morgan and James Poolton, and Stephen Higgs hosts 107.Drive.

Heavier music has a place in Terri-Anne Coope's The Midweek Mosh, which also explores alternative, goth, emo and metal culture. Chloe Wyton presents Pop Punk, Andy Fox's Rock Show spans classic and modern rock through progressive music and metal, and Josh Samuels hosts The Country Show. Paul Gray's Soul Stew adds another specialist strand to a service that changes musical direction across the week.

James Sandy's The Unseen Swerve explores creative life through theatre, dance, visual art, songwriting, poetry and other cultural activity. Interviews have included work connected with MAC Birmingham, while the station's wider coverage includes theatre reviews at the Hippodrome and reporting on local neighbourhood issues. Switch therefore links music discovery with the practical and cultural life of Birmingham, rather than separating its entertainment from its community role.