As of December 2023, the station has a weekly audience of 269,000 listeners according to RAJAR.[1]
History
Hallam FM logo used from 2007 to 2015.
The station started broadcasting on 1548 kHz/194m AM, 95.2 and 95.9 MHz FM under the name of Radio Hallam from its studios at Hartshead in Sheffield city centre on 1 October 1974. The first presenter heard on air was ex-BBC Radio 1 DJ Johnny Moran – the first record he played was I've Got the Music in Me by Kiki Dee, which stuck after a minute and a half.
On 1 October 1985, Radio Hallam's broadcast area significantly increased when it began to broadcast to all of South Yorkshire. In 1987, Radio Hallam merged with neighbouring Yorkshire stations Pennine Radio in Bradford and Viking Radio in Hull to form the now-defunct Yorkshire Radio Network.
The frequencies were changed during the 1980s to 96.1 FM for Rotherham, 97.4 FM for Sheffield, 102.9 FM for Barnsley, and 103.4 for the remainder of South Yorkshire. After a take-over of the parent company YRN by the Metro Radio Group, the AM frequency became Great Yorkshire Gold. As part of Hallam's licence agreement, the Rotherham transmitter ceased to be used by the station in the 1990s. Hallam also moved its studio facilities to 900 Herries Road, close to Sheffield Wednesday's Hillsborough ground. The office space at Hartshead was formerly used by the Sheffield Star newspaper.[2]
As the Metro Radio Group was bought by EMAP, Hallam FM also became part of the Big City Network in Northern England. In 2011, Bauer Media's Big City Network was replaced by the Place Portfolio, containing the group's local radio stations.
From late 2019 until early 2020 Hallam FM's Sheffield studios were shared with sister Yorkshire station Viking FM, following the closure of Viking's studios in Hull. Viking FM was then moved to co-locate with Pulse 1 in Leeds.[3]
Hits Radio rebrand
On 10 January 2024, station owners Bauer announced Hallam FM would be rebranded as Hits Radio South Yorkshire from April 2024, as part of a network-wide relaunch involving 17 local radio stations in England and Wales.[4] The announcement signalled the end of the Radio Hallam brand after nearly 50 years of broadcasting.[5]
The station's local programming will not be affected as a result of the relaunch.
The station broadcasts on analogue frequencies on 97.4 FM (Tapton Hill, Sheffield), 103.4 FM (Clifton, near the M18) and 102.9 FM (Ardsley) in Sheffield, Doncaster and Barnsley respectively. Almost the whole region is covered on 103.4 FM. The station also broadcasts via DAB on the Bauer Radio multiplex, and online and via their app.
Programming
Networked programming originates from Bauer's Manchester studios.[6][7]
The station's only remaining local programme, Big John @ Breakfast, is produced and broadcast from Bauer's Sheffield studios and airs weekdays from 6–10 am.[8]
News
Bauer's Sheffield newsroom broadcasts local news bulletins hourly from 6 am–7 pm on weekdays, and from 7 am–1 pm on Saturdays and Sundays. Headlines are broadcast on the half-hour during weekday breakfast and drivetime shows, alongside traffic bulletins.
National bulletins from Sky News Radio are carried overnight with bespoke networked bulletins on weekend afternoons, usually originating from Bauer's Leeds newsroom.
