Although many rural communities have benefitted from broadband, overall they have fallen well short of the advantages in most urban areas.
High speed broadband improves access to services, quality of life, and business viability – one third of Britons working from home now live in rural areas. Most urban communities take for granted Internet banking, downloading music, eBay and BBC iPlayer, as well as accessing health services, such as NHS Direct as a first port of call of health problems.
Which Broadband packages are available at your home or business.
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Find out latest news and information
for Worcestershire Broadband here:
The Broadband Connection Voucher Scheme has been extended in to Worcestershire to enable eligible businesses and voluntary organisations to claim grants of up to £3000 towards the cost of upgrading to superfast broadband. Find out more here.
Other news and information for Worcestershire:
http://www.superfastworcestershire.com/home
http://www.worcestershire.gov.uk/cms/superfast-worcestershire.aspx
for Herefordshire Broadband here:
Digital inclusion in The Marches research and information pack
http://www.fastershire.com/homepage
http://www.superfast-openreach.co.uk/
Digital inclusion is a big issue. That is making sure all communities know the benefits of broadband and know how to access the services they need. If you are supporting communities to use technology, access the internet and to get online in either Herefordshire or Worcestershire, we would like to hear more about what you are doing. We can even offer to publicise your project in our E-bulletin or Newsline publication.
If you get bad mobile phone coverage at home or anywhere else you spend time, there is a move afoot to plot problem providers and areas, so this can be taken up with the mobile providers. It is early days so far, however, already the map makes interesting reading, perhaps surprisingly, the issues in major cities. Rural areas are not well populated yet, we assume because there has been little participation so far. So now is your chance to get rural areas on the map.
Please follow this link to view the map, and this link to register your issues.
Contact Mark Herriott if you have questions or want to share information about how you are helping get communities online and using technology and the internet:
01684 312752; markh@comfirst.org.uk