Multi million pound scheme hits 250th superfast broadband cabinet milestone as Blyth goes live
Residents and businesses in Blyth are used to having good access to the fast lane via the nearby A1, but things are set to get even quicker as high-speed fibre broadband becomes available in the village.
The north Nottinghamshire village has become the latest in the county to get access to fibre broadband as the multi million pound Better Broadband for Nottinghamshire (BBfN) partnership between Nottinghamshire County Council and BT enables its 250th cabinet.
For many Blyth residents, it will mean they will be able to work from home, download music and films faster, buy and sell goods online, play games, video-message friends, access online council services and watch TV on-demand for the first time.
More than 500 Blyth homes and businesses are now able to access download speeds of up to 80Mbps. Residents and businesses will need to contact their internet service provider to sign-up to faster fibre services. It doesn’t happen automatically.
Nottinghamshire County Council, in partnership with BT, first made fibre broadband available to homes and businesses in June 2014. So far, the programme has made the new technology available to almost 47,000 properties across the county.
BBfN provides the infrastructure for a fibre broadband service to residents and businesses in areas of the county not served by commercial companies, such as BT or Virgin Media.
In the Bassetlaw District 70% of homes and businesses are covered by the private sector’s commercial rollout. However, thanks to BBfN, at least 95% of the district (and 97% of Nottinghamshire as a whole) will be able to get access to fibre broadband by Spring 2018.
Communities in Bassetlaw to have benefited from the BBfN programme so far include Drakeholes, Elkesley, Everton, Gringley-on-the-Hill, Harworth, Laneham, Mattersey, Mattersey Thorpe, Misterton, Nether Headon, North Leverton, Ranskill, Retford, Scrooby, Shireoaks, Sturton Le Steeple and Worksop. Ordsall and South Wheatley are set to go live with a BBfN cabinet over the next nine months, with further work also planned in North Leverton, Retford and Worksop.
Funding for BBfN has been provided by a wide-range of organisations, including the County Council, BT, Broadband Delivery UK (the Government’s broadband delivery arm), D2N2 Local Enterprise Partnership, the European Regional Development Fund and District and Borough Councils in Nottinghamshire, including Bassetlaw District Council.
Councillor Diana Meale, Chair of Economic Development Committee at Nottinghamshire County Council, said: “BBfN is one of the largest and most ambitious infrastructure projects ever undertaken in Notts and is being delivered on-time and on-budget. To have our 250th cabinet going live in just 12 months is an incredible achievement. I am delighted for the people of Blyth that their days of slow broadband and endless buffering are now over.”
Steve Henderson, BT’s regional director of next generation access, said: “We are making really good progress in Nottinghamshire since the first cabinet went live a year ago. The online fortunes of thousands of homes and businesses have been transformed in the past 12 months. People are now able to do far more online than ever before thanks to the rollout of high speed fibre broadband.”
David Ralph, chief executive for D2N2*, the local enterprise partnership, said: “Superfast broadband is a vital component in modern business operations. As the Better Broadband for Nottinghamshire reaches this important milestone, it is clear that it will continue to be a catalyst for future economic growth in the area.”
Benefits of fibre broadband include faster download and upload speeds; the ability to access the internet via multiple devices without experiencing a slow connection, faster downloads of films and music, a better online gaming experience, improved file sharing for businesses, solutions based on Cloud computing and being able to work more flexibly.
Due to the way in which the programme is delivered, new fibre cabinets will continue to go live at regular intervals during the coming weeks and months. For the most up-to-date information, including broadband coverage in your area, visit www.nottinghamshire.gov.uk/broadband
ENDS
PHOTO / FILMING OPPORTUNITY
Representatives of the Better Broadband for Nottinghamshire programme will join local residents at Blyth's new, upgraded fibre-broadband cabinet - the 250th to go live in Nottinghamshire
Date/time: Friday 19 June 2015, 14.15pm
Location: Junction of Worksop Road and High Street, Blyth, Nottinghamshire S81 8EJ
NOTES TO EDITORS
*D2N2 is the Local Enterprise Partnership for Derby, Derbyshire, Nottingham and Nottinghamshire.
Better Broadband for Nottinghamshire
The Better Broadband for Nottinghamshire project, led by Nottinghamshire County Council and BT, will change the way Nottinghamshire lives, works, plays and learns by investing £19.8 million (contract one) and £6.3m (contract two) to extend the county’s next generation fibre optic cable based broadband network to 97 per cent of homes and businesses.
It opens up huge opportunities to improve the quality of life and leisure prospects for Nottinghamshire families and will open new opportunities through online learning and faster access to information and services. It will provide a huge boost for businesses and the Nottinghamshire economy. Nottinghamshire firms will be able to find and establish new markets (locally, internationally, and globally), increase their competitiveness and create new jobs.
Households and businesses will have to contact their chosen Internet Service Provider to discuss upgrading to a fibre broadband connection.
The £19.8m in funding for contract one is broken down as follows: Nottinghamshire County Council - £2.15m; Broadband Delivery UK (BDUK) – £4.5m; ERDF - £2.7m; BT - £9.3m; Nottinghamshire District Councils (Ashfield District Council , Bassetlaw District Council, Broxtowe Borough Council, Gedling Borough Council, Mansfield District Council, Newark and Sherwood District Council and Rushcliffe Borough Council) - £1m; Nottingham City Council - £150,000.
The £6.3m for contract two is being provided by BDUK (£2.63m), D2N2 Local Enterprise Partnership Growth Deal funding (£2.63m) and BT (£1m capex).
A second phase of contract two will see Nottinghamshire County Council and BDUK commit a further £1.3m to the programme, extending the reach of fibre broadband in Bassetlaw and Newark and Sherwood.
About Superfast Britain
Superfast Britain is a 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
D2N2
D2N2 – the Local Enterprise Partnership for Derby, Derbyshire, Nottingham and Nottinghamshire – is fully committed to the delivery of superfast broadband across its area and is investing £4.8m through it Local Growth Fund to ensure businesses in the area can gain access to the advantages of high-speed internet.
ERDF
The Better Broadband for Nottinghamshire project is part financed by the East Midlands European Regional Development Fund Programme 2007 to 2013. The Department for Communities and Local Government is the managing authority for the European Regional Development Fund Programme, which is one of the funds established by the European Commission to help local areas stimulate their economic development by investing in projects which will support local businesses and create jobs. For more information visit
www.gov.uk/browse/business/funding-debt/european-regional-development-funding
