Broadband East Riding Project 2014

The Parish has been sent this so Paul has asked me to put it on the website.

This email is being sent to all Parish Councils in the East Riding of Yorkshire to provide an update on the delivery of the 'Broadband East Riding' project. We would kindly ask Parish Clerks to please bring this email and the most recent press release (copied below) to the attention of your parish council(s) for their information.

 

The first three phases of the superfast broadband project have already been announced and are in progress - the roll-out has begun to go 'live' and so far around 12,000 properties across the East Riding can access faster fibre-based broadband.

 

Details of the further phases will be announced in the coming months once the project plans are complete.  The project will run until December 2015.

 

For further information on the project roll-out (including location maps of the phases announced to date, and details of the accompanying business support programme to help businesses take advantage of the new technology) please visit http://www.broadband.eastriding.gov.uk/.

 

Best regards,

Steve Howdle

Rural Development Officer (Office days: Wednesday - Friday)
East Riding of Yorkshire Council
Directorate of Planning & Economic Regeneration

Rural Policy & Partnerships Team

County Hall
Beverley
HU17 9BA
Tel: 01482 391696

 

 

'Broadband East Riding' press release - October 2014 - please see below

 

Rawcliffe Amongst First to go Superfast as Part of Broadband East Riding Rollout Press Release

 

Residents and businesses in Rawcliffe, Goole, Snaith and Howdenshire are amongst the first in the East Riding to benefit from access to superfast fibre broadband.

 

As part of the Broadband East Riding programme a launch event was held in Rawcliffe to celebrate the high-speed technology “going live”.

 

In total around 12,000 properties across the East Riding can access faster based fibre broadband.  Approximately 8,500 of these are in the Goole, Howden, Rawcliffe and Snaith areas. Residents and businesses should contact their service provider to find out if superfast broadband is available to order.

 

The first three phases of the Broadband East Riding Programme have already been announced and details of further phases will be announced in the coming months.

 

Further details of locations can be found at http://www.broadband.eastriding.gov.uk/

 

Broadband East Riding will make superfast fibre broadband speeds of more than 24Mbps available to more than 42,000 homes and businesses in the East Riding of Yorkshire by December 2015. In addition, the project aims to ensure the whole area will have access to broadband speeds of 2Mbps or more. This target also takes into account the commercial roll-out of fibre broadband by the private sector in the area.

 

This is exciting news for those living, working and learning in East Riding, as the boost to broadband speeds will bring new opportunities to home life, businesses and schools.  Improved access will also bring social benefits to rural communities, supporting them to grow and thrive.

 

Councillor Jonathan Owen, deputy leader of East Riding of Yorkshire Council and cabinet portfolio holder for transformation and strategic partnerships, said: “The launch of the first cabinet related to the Broadband East Riding project is an important milestone and an excellent example of the public and private sector working together for the benefit of residents and customers.

 

“Both ourselves and BT are working in partnership to ensure our local communities benefit from high-speed broadband, which is essential is this digital age as technology develops and more and more business and social connections are made online.

 

“It is brilliant that areas of Goole, Howden, Rawcliffe and Snaith are able to access the very best broadband services and that these benefits will be eventually enjoyed by the whole region.”

 

BT is contributing £4 million towards the programme which, together with grants from BDUK of £5.57m, the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) of £4.4m and East Riding of Yorkshire Council, will see a total investment of around £14m by December 2015.

 

Bill Murphy, BT’s managing director of next generation access, said: “Every day the number of services delivered to us online, whether designed to entertain, educate or meet our daily needs, is growing. Already, many digital services require a reliable high-speed broadband connection to work most effectively.  As content and applications get more sophisticated superfast broadband will become ever more essential. That’s why I would urge anyone who now has access to fibre to get online superfast.

 

“Fibre is also essential for business. In order to compete effectively in this world of technology, you need to be able to move, act and do business quickly and effectively. Faster broadband breaks down the barriers to doing business in the digital world like online trading, which helps to empower those small businesses to find new markets, sell new products, try new models and compete on an equal footing with larger businesses.”

 

The new fibre broadband network will be open to all communications providers on an equivalent basis. Households and businesses will therefore benefit from a highly-competitive market, bringing greater choice and affordable prices from a wide range of service providers.

 

Faster speeds will boost the competitiveness of local businesses, helping them to find new customers and operate more efficiently.

 

Councillor Jane Evison, cabinet portfolio holder for economy, investment and inequalities, said: “For business, it means quick and easy downloads, shorter upload times to get large documents and data to customers and suppliers and time and cost savings by enabling video conferencing and remote working.

 

“To help businesses take advantage of all of the benefits that this new technology will bring, East Riding of Yorkshire Council is running a free business support programme, funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). This programme will demonstrate the benefits of high-speed internet with targeted support and information to help businesses turn faster broadband speeds into business growth.

 

“The business support that is available includes the guidance of a dedicated business adviser, providing one-to-one advice, external IT system diagnostic reports, providing an action plan to take forward, and various workshops covering a range of topics devised to help businesses get the most out of being connected and to stimulate growth.”

 

Support is targeted primarily at eligible businesses, as defined by ERDF criteria.

 

John Skidmore, director of corporate strategy and commissioning at East Riding of Yorkshire Council, said: “At home, superfast broadband will enable people to run multiple bandwidth-hungry applications at the same time making gaming, watching BBC i-Player, using Skype to keep in touch with friends and family anywhere in the world, or downloading films and music much quicker and free from ‘buffering’ or screen freeze.

 

“Many communities inside the project area will benefit from a host of new learning and development opportunities for local people as well as easier access to local authority and health services.”

 

For up to date information on available business support and the roll-out, visit

www.broadband.eastriding.gov.uk.