The battle for broadband
BT want to hear views from villagers
Rural communities in the Stirling area were this week urged to make their voices heard in the battle for fibre broadband.
BT Scotland want to hear from towns and villages willing to work with them to expand coverage across Scotland.
It has launched a new initiative – the Community Fibre Partnership (CFP) – to offer an alternative way forward for communities which are not currently included in any existing plans for high-speed broadband rollout.
BT Scotland director, Brendan Dick said: “In recent years, a huge amount of work has taken place across the area and more than 85 per cent of local homes are now able to get superfast download speeds.
“But there’s still a lot of work to do in some areas and there are communities which don’t yet have faster fibre broadband and not currently included in rollout plans.
“We know speed is important. It helps you do things much faster and is a major boost for everyday things many of us take for granted – like listening to music online, catching up on TV box sets, working from home or online learning and education.
“We’re having great success with a new initiative – called a Community Fibre Partnership (CFP) – specifically intended to help communities not yet involved in rollout plans. Across the UK, around 250 CFP projects have so far been agreed with local communities, with 100 already completed.”
A Community Fibre Partnership involves a local group working directly with BT. There usually needs to be a joint funding arrangement. A BT grant of up to £20,000 may even be available if a local school benefits from the work.
Many of Stirlingshire’s rural areas have been campaigning for better broadband for a number of years.
The Observer reported earlier this month how new fibre cabinets installed at Killearn means residents and businesses can now place their orders for better broadband.
We also reported how in Balquhidder, one community group – which has been fighting for the last decade for better coverage – is looking to finalise a plan that would see homes gain access to fibre cables.
The Balquhidder Community Broadband (BCB) group is hoping to capitalise on a fibre cable installed by the EE network in Balquhidder Glen in January.
To find out more on behalf of a community, visit www. communityfibre.bt.com.