[Back to Broadband news]

Better Broadband in Herefordshire
Champion Update Nov 2011

Openreach Investment in Hereford

BT Openreach is investing in Hereford City to enable many residents and businesses to access better broadband. This investment, as part of the fibre deployment programme by Openreach, will complement the work of the Borders Broadband project in establishing a broadband network throughout the more rural parts of the county.

The impact of enabling the exchange in Hereford during 2012 is likely to see a massive difference in the speeds residents and businesses can access in the city and the surrounding areas. It will also help the establishment of Rotherwas as an Enterprise Zone with national status as a place for business.

The selection of a commercial telecoms supplier to provide the new high-speed broadband infrastructure for the rest of the county is well underway. A contract is expected to be awarded in late spring 2012, and work is due to start soon afterwards.

DEFRA Funding

DEFRA have recently announced a new fund to make broadband available to the remotest rural areas.

The Rural Community Broadband Fund is for communities in those hardest-to-reach areas which are unlikely to benefit from private sector investment in a new high-speed Broadband infrastructure. This fund will therefore aim to fill the gap where current Government funding for rural broadband may not reach.

The Borders Broadband project covering Herefordshire and Gloucestershire, as one of the original four national rural broadband pilots, is well ahead in its procurement of a network supplier. As such, information gathered during this process can be used to understand whether this fund is needed in Gloucestershire and Herefordshire. 

Discussions have taken place with DEFRA to ensure that, if this funding is required, areas in both counties are well-placed to receive funds. Therefore the Borders Broadband team will be working with DEFRA to access this fund on behalf of communities using data, evidence and information gathered through the procurement process. 

Survey Update

Several people have made the comment that they never received the survey through the post, but Royal Mail has assured us that they have been delivered. If you know of people who did not receive them please let us know. We still have some hard copies that can be distributed. Also it seems people were expecting the questionnaires to come in addressed envelopes rather than with other promotional material. Please encourage people to continue to complete the survey, best on line if at all possible. There is no deadline as we will continue to collect the data, but we will be fully analysing the results at the end of January.

You can access the survey HERE

Community Technology Grant

The deadline for the Community Technology Grant is on the 14th February 2012. The grant is for community venues or parish councils to purchase IT equipment for use by local residents. The grant is for up to £2,000 with match funding of 20% required. There have been a considerable number of enquiries and we would encourage as many communities as possible to submit an application.

For information contact Delegated Grants at Herefordshire Council via 01432 260753 or email delegatedgrants@herefordshire.gov.uk . The forms can also be downloaded via the website: www.herefordshire.gov.uk/community_and_living/neighbourhood/1653.asp

Thank you for your continued support and season’s greetings.

Join the campaign to bring high-speed broadband to rural Herefordshire www.fastbroadband4herefordshire.org.uk

For more information on the Borders Broadband project visit www.herefordshire.gov.uk/broadband.