A canal barge is set to become a floating community radio station on the Leeds and Liverpool Canal this summer.

But first, the arts agency Super Slow Way is on the lookout for artists to help transform the craft for the missions.

The Bill Hunt, which has been based at Blackburn's Eanam Wharf and has been a mobile classroom and residential base, is the vessel in the frame.

And with a budget of up to £7,000 for the refit, arts chiefs want to adapt the barge in time for July's Blackburn Festival of Making.

A Super Slow Way spokesperson said: "Over the summer of 2024, the vessel will be used as a floating community radio station, Drift.

"The Super Slow Way is now looking for an artist, designer or collective to work with young people on the barge over the spring to renovate its exterior and interior while accommodating a radio studio.

"The young people are looking for someone imaginative who, using simple means, can reinvent the vessel and help them give it a fresh new makeover.

"Alongside the renovation of the boat we hope to customise an off-the-shelf wooden garden shed which will function as a ‘jingle shed’ for outreach recording and workshops."

Supporters are hoping to tap into the spirit of the legendary Radio Caroline - the pirate radio station which made waves in the North Sea with broadcasts in the 1960s.

Once completed, artist Lucia Scazzocchio, of Social Broadcasts, will work with young people to get the floating studio operational on the canal.

Plans are being formulated for programmes which capture the "life and sounds of the canal, both with and by the people who are connected to this area of Lancashire".

Interviews and group discussions will feature, alongside live music and poetry, pre-recorded features, field recordings and soundscapes, building up to a final broadcast on Saturday, August 31, with various stops along the waterway.

Work on the barge refit is expected to start by late May and be finished by June 30.

Those interested are asked to e-mail Ben Pearson at ben@superslowway.org.uk before next Tuesday, with an outline of any proposals, a timeline, budget and any examples of previous works.