It has been announced that Wythenshawe FM's Hayley Swanton has made it to the finals of the prestigious UK wide 2025 Community Radio Awards for the short story Murder on the Mersey. Produced and narrated by Swanton last October as a Halloween special, it is one of five pieces of audio shortlisted in the Arts and Creative Radio of the Year category.

Murder on the Mersey is a collision of Hayley's professional world and private passions. As a classical musician, she finds ways to break down the barriers of classical music but loves to unwind with a great crime story. Hayley says "connecting these with my community felt like the natural path to take with this project."

WFM Director Colin Owen said, "Murder on the Mersey represents the best of what creative community radio can offer. It reclaims a forgotten local story and tells it in a way that is informative, engaging, and artistically rich. Hayley's unique blend of historical research, classical music and narrative craft shows how radio can still surprise and captivate. Moreover, this project demonstrates how radio can connect us, not only to each other, but to the stories hidden in our streets."

Finalist Hayley says she is proud to represent WFM and is "excited and honoured to have been shortlisted to represent our wonderful station at these awards. At it's heart Wythenshawe FM is about community - both the one we serve and the community within our station. We're all united by our passion, creativity and the desire to bring the stories of our surroundings to life."

Listen to Murder on the Mersey...

The Community Radio Awards were established to celebrate community radio and all the hard work and time volunteers put into their shows, station and community. This year the award ceremony will be held in Bradford on Saturday 25th October.