A DARLINGTON radio station brand is to expand into Durham.

Durham FM is to be renamed Alpha Durham, with more of its programming being broadcast from the Darlington headquarters of Alpha Radio.

The changes follow a request by Mark Reason, station manager of Alpha Radio, which was agreed by media regulator Ofcom. An extra two hours of programming each weekday, for up to six of the ten daytime locally-made hours, could be shared.

Weekday breakfast programming and four-hour daytime shows on Saturday and Sunday will remain separately and locally produced in Durham and Darlington.

At all other times local programming will come from Darlington.

Radio news website Radio Today is also reporting that Minster Northallerton will be renamed Alpha Northallerton.

It is claimed the three services are intended to become one when analogue radio signals are switched off, which could be as early as 2015.

Ofcom said: “Ofcom’s published policy on allowing regionalised programmes to run six of the ten locally-made hours on certain local stations was implemented with situations like this in mind.

“In this new scenario the breakfast show will remain bespoke for Durham listeners, and the rest of the daytime output will cover the area served by other stations.”