96.7 Ashbourne Radio began broadcasting at 10am on Bank Holiday Monday, May 26th, 2008.

It came about when certain members of the local community let the owners of High Peak Radio, the commercial radio station broadcasting to the High Peak and Hope Valley, know that they were disappointed they could not receive the service in and around Ashbourne.

The management and staff of High Peak Radio investigated further and found that Ashbourne received very little service from existing commercial broadcasters specifically from and for the area.

Following meetings with Derbyshire Dales and County Councillors and officials, some local business representatives and other local community leaders, High Peak Radio made the decision to ask OFCOM if they had any objection to them setting up a station which didn’t provide High Peak Radio’s programmes – but provided a mix of music, national and international news along with local news and information, including interviews with local people and news about local events and community organisations which was produced for and made in Ashbourne, Dovedale and the Staffordshire borders.

After negotiation and with the support of many members of the local community, OFCOM gave permission for High Peak Radio to set up a specific local service for the area.

The management team at the new station, in consultation with Derbyshire Dales District Council, set about providing a service which would also be made available to other areas in the Derbyshire Dales, specifically Wirksworth, Matlock and Bakewell via a digital service streaming on the internet at www.ashbourneradio.co.uk

The station is committed to providing a locally-focussed service which reflects the interests and concerns of the people of Ashbourne and Dovedale and the Staffordshire borders along with entertainment and information, 24 hours per day, 365 days per year. Using the latest studio technologies, the station aims to maintain a thoroughly professional-sounding commercial radio service which the people in the area will be proud of and will regard as their own.

Subsequently the station, after two years of successful operation in Ashbourne, became one of the few commercial stations to expand in recent times. After successful representations were made to OFCOM, the station was granted a further licence extension to broadcast to Wirksworth and the Ecclesbourne Valley on 101.8FM from June 14th, 2010.