More than 21,800 Northamptonshire homes and businesses now have access to high-speed fibre broadband thanks to superfast Northamptonshire programme

Northamptonshire County Council has today announced that more than 21,800 homes and businesses in the county can now get faster fibre broadband as the multi million pound Superfast Northamptonshire project continues at pace bringing the high-speed technology to more communities.

The latest areas to benefit from the programme include parts of Aldwincle, Barnwell, Cotton, Denford, Mawsley Village, Northampton, Oundle, Stoke Doyle, Thorpe Waterville, Thrapston and Woodford. Fifteen roadside fibre broadband cabinets in these communities have just “gone live”.

The first phase of the programme, led by the county council in partnership with BT, builds on the private sector’s commercial roll-out of fibre broadband to make the high-speed technology available to around 90% of homes and businesses in the county by the end of 2015. Over 56,000 homes and businesses will have access to fibre-based broadband as a result of the project.

Without public investment from the county council and the Government’s Broadband Delivery UK (BDUK) programme as well as private investment from BT, it would not be commercially viable to make faster fibre broadband available in these communities. Public sector intervention is critical to ensure more people can benefit from access to faster broadband.

This announcement comes as the Department for Culture Media and Sport reveals that more than 1 million UK homes and businesses now have access to superfast broadband as a result of the UK wide rollout. The rate at which the fibre technology is being rolled out under the Government programme is rapidly accelerating, with up to 40,000 UK premises gaining access every week. It will extend superfast broadband to 95% of the UK by 2017.

The Superfast Northamptonshire project is playing its part in delivering this goal and remains one of the front runners in England. The county council’s ultimate aim goes beyond the Government’s nationwide 95% coverage target and intends to secure countywide access to superfast broadband by the end of 2017.

Cllr Andre Gonzalez De Savage, county council cabinet member for economic growth and strategic infrastructure, said: “I’m delighted that Northamptonshire is part of this exciting story of delivering the infrastructure which will enable communities to access superfast broadband speeds.

“So far we’ve seen some rapid deployment across our county and I know that each week we are seeing more and more fibre being installed, which means we’re on the way to achieving our goals.”

Bill Murphy, managing director of next generation access for BT, said: “The Superfast Northamptonshire programme is making strong progress, bringing high-speed fibre broadband to some of the most challenging areas.

"The programme shows the power of the public and private sectors working together. BT has brought technical expertise to the table as well as millions of pounds of investment and, if we can go further, we will do so.

"This exciting technology is providing a major boost for local households and businesses whether they are using it to work more efficiently and find new customers or for online learning and leisure."

The new network is available on an open wholesale basis to all internet service providers, ensuring competitive pricing and products for all local households and businesses.

To access the high-speed broadband network, people and companies in the upgraded areas should contact their chosen Internet Service Provider and enquire about a fast fibre connection.

The county council has already launched a procurement for the next major stage of the project and more news on the outcome of this will be available in the autumn.

For more information about the project, including the ability to see when services may be rolled out in your area by using the ‘When and Where’ interactive deployment map, please go to: www.superfastnorthamptonshire.net

ENDS

Notes to Editors

About Superfast Northamptonshire

Superfast Northamptonshire aims to secure access to superfast broadband for all homes and businesses in the county by end 2017, bridging the gap where the commercial telecoms market becomes unviable to build the network which supports service provision. Through the Northamptonshire Next Generation Strategy, the county council is investing with telecoms suppliers to deploy fibre based broadband to those parts of the county which would otherwise not be served commercially. This is expected to affect around 90,000 premises across Northamptonshire.

The first stage of the Superfast Northamptonshire project is being taken forward in partnership with BT who were appointed following a procurement through the Government’s Broadband Infrastructure Delivery Framework. This first stage of the project will roll out fibre-based broadband to over 56,000 premises by the end of 2015, of which over 50,100 will have access to superfast broadband (speeds above 24Mbps). This is made possible through a capital investment of £4.08m each by the county council and BDUK plus £3.2m from BT. When combined with BT’s revenue contribution, the total commitment to the broadband roll out is over £16m.

The next major stage of the project commenced in June 2014 when the county council issued its second procurement under the BDUK Broadband Framework. The outcome of this and more news about the further extension of roll out plans will be announced in the autumn.

Almost three quarters of all premises in the county should be covered by the commercial plans of private sector telecoms providers without the need for public investment.

For more information about the project, including the ability to see when services may be rolled out in your area by using the ‘When and Where’ interactive deployment map, please go to: www.superfastnorthamptonshire.net

About Superfast Britain

Superfast Britain is a UK Government programme of investment in broadband and communication infrastructure across the UK. Run by the Department of Culture, Media and Sport, this investment helps businesses to grow, creates jobs and will make Britain more competitive in the global race. The portfolio is comprised of three elements:
• £780m to extend superfast broadband to 95% of the UK by 2017
• £150m to provide high speed broadband to businesses in 22 cities
• £150m to improve quality and coverage of mobile phone and basic data network services
Administered on behalf of Government by Broadband Delivery UK (BDUK), Superfast Britain is transforming Britain by promoting growth, enabling skills and learning, and improving quality of life.
For further information: https://www.gov.uk/broadband-delivery-uk