11 December 2003
A bid to bring Broadband to Herefordshire, which kicks off early in
the New Year, has received a boost following news of a welcome
£2 million injection of Euro cash.
Fast Internet access will place Herefordshire firmly on the cyber
map ensuring the county's rural businesses can remain competitive
into the future.
The money was secured by the Herefordshire Partnership through the
European Regional Development Fund (administered by the Government
Office of the West Midlands) and will make broadband services
available throughout the county.
The Herefordshire In Touch (HIT) Programme will receive up to
£2 million in addition to the £1.6 million Single
Regeneration Budget funding already approved by Advantage West
Midlands.
Neil Pringle, Herefordshire Partnership Chairman, said: "This is
just the news business in Herefordshire have been waiting for.
Broadband will enable us to remain competitive with businesses in
urban areas and compete in the global economy."
Set to launch in January, the "We want Broadband" campaign aims to
encourage businesses and citizens of Herefordshire to register for
Broadband services.
When enough registrations have been taken, the HIT Programme will
encourage suppliers to meet this demand by offering subsidies to
successful applicants.
The Herefordshire Partnership sees broadband as an important
element in the future economic development of the county.
Around 80% of the population in the UK has access to broadband but
in Herefordshire that figure drops to only 27%.
The campaign hopes to demonstrate to broadband suppliers that, even
though Herefordshire is England's most rural county, it has enough
broadband customers to make supply a viable business
proposition.
Many providers of computer based products and services are
developing their ranges based in the expectation broadband will be
widely available.
As consumers through the rest of the UK are utilizing the new
technology there is the potential for Herefordshire to be left
behind, both socially and economically.
To succeed, the campaign needs all the people in the county who
want affordable broadband connection (for either business or
private use) to register their demand with the We Want Broadband
campaign.
More follows
From January 5th people can do this either on the campaign's web
site at
www.wewantbroadband.org.
Herefordshire Partnership is determined to ensure individuals and
businesses within the County have access to the latest technology
which will enable them to interact and compete with the rest of the
UK on an equal footing.