20
February
2017
|
13:48
Europe/London

New lease of life for Northants businessman after fibre broadband reaches his home village

Summary
Orlingbury resident Peter Robinson says high speed broadband has played a key role in helping him pursue a new career working from home.

Orlingbury resident Peter Robinson says high speed broadband has played a key role in helping him pursue a new career working from home.

The businessman was considering early retirement before spotting the opportunity, following the arrival of superfast broadband in the village of Orlingbury, to set up his own company – all thanks to the Superfast Northamptonshire project.

His home-based business – Liberti Consulting - now provides expert card payment and anti-fraud advice to clients throughout the UK and Europe.

Peter said: “Fibre broadband is now key to the way I run my business. Without it, I couldn’t base myself at home and work with clients throughout the UK and Europe. Being able to Skype, download large files quickly, and access complex data online -all from my village in rural Northamptonshire, has really extended my working life. I think I’d have probably retired if the only alternative was to commute long-distances daily but the leap in technology has proved a real godsend.

“The arrival of fibre broadband has given the whole village a boost. People were clamouring to get it and it’s proving extremely popular, particularly with my son who’s really enjoying being able to play games online with his friends. Having experienced it, I would now find it very hard to get by without it. I also think that it’s been a boom for property prices locally and made my home more attractive to potential buyers, as I personally wouldn’t consider moving to a property that didn’t have access to fibre broadband.”

Faster download speeds are now available in Orlingbury as part of the multi-million pound rollout of fibre broadband between BT and Northamptonshire County Council.

So far, more than 71,200 homes and businesses have benefitted from this work. And because BT’s work is carried out by Openreach, residents can choose from a wide range of broadband providers, and benefit from competitive pricing and choice.

Steve Henderson, BT’s regional director for next generation access, said: “We often talk about the many possibilities that fibre broadband provides, and Peter’s story is a perfect example of how the technology can make things possible that just wouldn’t have been an option before. It’s great to hear his business goes from strength to strength and that our fibre broadband work with Northamptonshire County Council has played a key role in making that happen.”

Cllr Ian Morris, whose county council cabinet portfolio covers the Superfast Northamptonshire project, said: “Increasingly, local businesses and residents are seeing the benefits that a superfast fibre broadband service can bring.

“This may be helping to boost the bottom line for business through time and money saving applications, or at home, enabling the whole family to go on-line at the same time without frustrating buffering delays.

“Having a county with excellent broadband infrastructure is essential if we want to be able to compete economically with other areas.”

Fibre broadband helps make everything happen online much faster than a standard broadband connection.The main technology being rolled out for the project by BT typically offers download speeds of up to 80Mbps.

To access the benefits of superfast broadband, residents and businesses should contact their internet service provider and enquire about an upgrade – as customers do not automatically get faster broadband once fibre broadband is available in an area.

To find out more about broadband plans in the county visit www.superfastnorthamptonshire.net.The website includes a Roll Out Schedule and the latest newsletter is available on the Find Out More section.