Residents and businesses in the Harrogate district are being asked to let their local councils know how difficult it is for them to get broadband at a level and speed to suit their needs.
Through Connecting North Yorkshire, Harrogate Borough Council is working with North Yorkshire County Council which has recently signed a contract with BT that will see around £70 million invested in fibre broadband for the county.
The aim is to achieve high quality broadband right across the county and residents and businesses are being asked to help make the case for faster broadband in the Harrogate district.
Kathryn Daly, Harrogate Borough Council’s Economic Development Manager, said that a crucial part of the drive to bring better broadband to the county, rests on identifying those areas most in need.
Kathryn Daly said:
You can help us achieve this by taking the simple Broadband Speed Test and Demand survey so that we can make the case for investment in our district.
I would also urge people to attend the second Broadband North Yorkshire Conference which is being held on Saturday, 29 September 2012 at Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal Visitor Centre.
These are free of charge thanks to the support of Skipton Building Society and the National Trust.
BT’s network will be open to all communications providers on an equal wholesale basis and so North Yorkshire consumers and businesses will benefit from a highly competitive market. This was an important stipulation in the tender process.
County Councillor Carl Les, the Deputy Leader of North Yorkshire County Council and Chairman of the ConnectingNorth Yorkshire project said:
North Yorkshire is a large rural county with many remote premises. As a result, deploying broadband is a particular challenge.
We believe the technology is vital to our economic future however and so we are delighted to have signed this agreement. The project will help local businesses to be competitive and ensure they remain in the county. It can also play an important role in attracting even more firms to the county thereby helping to create jobs for local people.
The broadband speed test and demand tool can be found at:
www.harrogate.gov.uk/broadband early responses would be appreciated
Places on the Broadband Conference are limited so please book as soon as you can. Sessions for communities will be in the morning and for businesses in the afternoon..
To secure your ticket, please fill in the form online at www.broadbandnorthyorkshire.com/2012 or download a copy by clicking here
