North East to benefit from £7m fibre broadband regeneration scheme

The North East is said to be getting a multi-million pound boost from an initiative which sees local communities forming partnerships with Openreach.

The initiative is set to bring high-speed fibre broadband to rural homes and businesses.

A study published today (March 12) has estimated that Openreach’s Community Fibre Partnerships (CFP) programme will be worth £7m to the North East within the next 15 years.

The report, by Regeneris Consulting, has highlighted the business, residential and social benefits provided by the partnerships, which are calculated to be worth an average of £800k to each community.

Across the UK, more than 500 communities have already signed up to the CFP programme, of which around 20 are in the North East.

Simon Hooton, director at Regeneris Consulting, said: “Despite delivery challenges in more rural areas, high speed broadband is vital to the prospects of communities across the UK.

“This report shows the breadth and scale of benefits generated when you bring high speed connectivity into those communities for the first time.

“The evidence from the latest research, and from residents and businesses themselves, is that broadband opens up new opportunities which enhance people’s lives and can have a positive impact on their health and the environment around them.”

The CFP programme enables communities wanting faster speeds, but not included in any fibre broadband roll-out plans, to jointly fund an upgrade to fibre alongside Openreach - the business responsible for Britain’s largest phone and broadband network.

The report, ‘The Impact of High-Speed Broadband for Communities’, examines the economic impact of Community Fibre Partnerships on businesses and households over 15 years and the social benefits in just over seven years.

For North East businesses, improvements in productivity, efficiency, flexible working, innovation and finding new markets and customers are expected to be worth more than £2m; whilst households get economic and social benefits worth about £4.9m.

The boost to the value of a residential property when fibre broadband is provided is highlighted. For the UK as a whole, it is estimated to account for £100m of the £340m economic boost expected to be generated by Community Fibre Partnerships nationwide.

Derek Richardson, Openreach’s programme director for the North East, added: “The tremendous power of fibre broadband is made very clear in this report.

“It’s heartening to see the many benefits that these partnerships are giving to our communities in so many different ways. This technology is making a major contribution to the future success and prosperity of people across the North East.

“More than 97 per cent of North East homes and businesses now have access to superfast fibre broadband – but we recognise there is more to do. We are committed to making faster broadband as widely available as possible.”

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