Four-year fast broadband deal for Herefordshire finally complete

8:30pm Wednesday 19th December 2012 in News

From left: Alex Hunt, Graham Powell, Jon Reynolds, Mark Hawthorne, John Jarvis and Ian Binks. From left: Alex Hunt, Graham Powell, Jon Reynolds, Mark Hawthorne, John Jarvis and Ian Binks.

A £56.6 MILLION deal to bring superfast broadband to Herefordshire within four years is done.

BT sealed the deal, the first of its kind, with Herefordshire Council this week as part of the government-backed Borders Broadband contract.

By the terms of the deal about 90 per cent of homes and businesses in the county should have access to fibre broadband by the end of 2016, with speeds of 24 megabits per second (Mbps) or above for all who want it by 2018.

See tomorrow's Hereford Times for the full report.

Comments(25)

megilleland says...
10:19pm Wed 19 Dec 12

£10.1 million funding from Herefordshire Council. Does Mr Pickles know this?

See press release here:
http://www.gfirstbro
adband.co.uk/useful-
info/latest-news/id/
1451/herefordshire-a
nd-gloucestershire-s
ign-uks-first-joint-
county-council-deal-
to-bring-faster-broa
dband-to-rural-areas
.aspx

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Vic Vomitello says...
11:55pm Wed 19 Dec 12

Cue another photo opportunity for the Leader of Herefordshire Council. In the light of a succession of PR disasters and high profile failings - not least the Ofsted condemnation of Childrens Services - it will take a lot more than this to get us to trust them.

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TwoWheelsGood says...
10:00am Thu 20 Dec 12

I still fail to see why the Council prefer to put £10.1m into a private venture when childrens services and other departments are in such a shocking state, not to mention the very fabric of the county. Do we get a return on our investment? With BT's record of delay, those dates are just a pipe dream - they were a year late delivering in the City, so as for the middle of nowhere, who knows. Of course Jarvis C and his cronies will be long gone and unaccountable by then.

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mizza21 says...
11:38am Thu 20 Dec 12

Most people in Herefordshire will not need or encounter Children's Services.
The vast majority of people in Hereford WILL notice Fibre Broadband though, and the council will trumpet it's involvement in it.

This is disgustingly cynical

Ulimately it's about power and votes.
Fast Broadband is exciting and voters will notice it.
Kids don't vote.
It's not our council, it belongs to Jarvis and his cronies, pictured above and they run it like it's their private business.

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Herefordian07 says...
11:58am Thu 20 Dec 12

Well said Mizza21, unfortunately Jarvis and his cohorts do run it like it is their business and it shows how inept they are too, because we are in debt and borrowing more to dig our way out! If Jarvis has brokered the deal we will porbably lose out again like we have with the ESG farce.

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bobby47 says...
12:46pm Thu 20 Dec 12

Lads, Lasses, Look at him! look at Jarvis. He's glaring at us. Look at his beady eyes taunting us as if to say,'Im not done with you yet. I've got more things to waste your money on'.
Well he don't scare me! I'll be damned if his bloody glare is going to put me off delivering rubbish, drivel and tripe!

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William Rudd says...
12:59pm Thu 20 Dec 12

Lol at the usual bah humbugs spouting drivel and tripe.
You lot cheer me up & make me laugh at your comments.
Please keep it up in the new year.
Merry christmas to you all.

Will

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Vic Vomitello says...
1:03pm Thu 20 Dec 12

William (nee Andrew Bowley) represents the council PR accurately. He gets the council's sneering, abusive, don't care attitude just right. Shame the council does not care enough to engage properly with posters and try and put its message across. If there was a prize for the country's most ineffectual PR department, Herefordshire Council would win hands down.

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bobby47 says...
1:11pm Thu 20 Dec 12

And my very best wishes to you and your family William.
We'll continue hostilities in the New Year.

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mizza21 says...
1:42pm Thu 20 Dec 12

I just took a good look at the photo.
God they look slimy!
I wouldn't trust em with my dinner money.

What a crap photo.
It looks contrived and the one leaning on the fence looks like he's not invitied.
Why is the picture so poorly lit and taken on a peice of bare concrete next to a rusty railing, the whole ensemble rather aptly completed by a grubby BT van in the background?
Idiots.

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bobby47 says...
3:41pm Thu 20 Dec 12

Well I reckon he's fixed his steely gaze on me and I'll be damned if Im going to put up with it.
If Jarvis is intent on trouble and he's outside the pub tonight when I stagger out and he wants to beat the living day lights out of me, I'll tell you now, I'll not be found to be lacking courage.
I ain't just taking a kicking. I'll defend myself.
It's getting to the stage where you can't go out without getting trouble coming at you. This is no way for the leader of the Council to behave. Picking a fight with me is unacceptable and I ain't putting up with it!
Merry xmas to all my fellow ranters and ravers.

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littlewhitebull says...
4:38pm Thu 20 Dec 12

megilleland wrote:
£10.1 million funding from Herefordshire Council. Does Mr Pickles know this?

See press release here:
http://www.gfirstbro

adband.co.uk/useful-

info/latest-news/id/

1451/herefordshire-a

nd-gloucestershire-s

ign-uks-first-joint-

county-council-deal-

to-bring-faster-broa

dband-to-rural-areas

.aspx
HC quite obviously don't care what Mr Pickles thinks, just as they seem unconcerned about public opinion. The Here You Can signs are costing about £300 each. A total of 42 signs on A and B roads with a total cost of over £12,000. Add this to other costs to the taxpayer of £21,000 for 'website design' + £15,000 rebranding process + £12,000 for bottled water for meetings + £74,000 on the Herefordshire Matters magazine, etc., etc. and you begin to wonder why we are ever referred to as "cash-strapped."

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mizza21 says...
5:01pm Thu 20 Dec 12

Merry Xmas Bobby
Give the blighter a proper biffing from me.

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wyesider says...
6:32pm Thu 20 Dec 12

It seems the council's £10+ million contribution towards super fast broadband has caused some adverse comments.
I was in Caerphilly today and a 'secret' meeting has caused outrage in that area. 20 senior council staff are to receive pay increases of up to 30%, when most council staff have seen no pay rise for 3 years.
The Chief Executive will see an increase in his pay of a mere £27,000.
The council are seeking legal advice as to whether they can rescind the pay increases, as the public are hopping mad!
It seems the gravy train is still in progress in the UK.

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Ubique5740 says...
6:41pm Thu 20 Dec 12

I bet the photograph was taken miles away from the Council base so that the council members were able to claim mileage and lunch. It would of had more credence if the photograph was taken looking into a trench near to the Council House so that the voters would think that the work has started, and,more importantly no mileage or meal claim.

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cursor says...
7:12pm Thu 20 Dec 12

So in 2018 we'll still have slower connections than some areas of the UK have in 2012? This kind of thing affects the decisions of businesses and residents wanting to relocate. Would you move to a county this behind? Also, I've not seen such a pretentious photo in years.

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littlewhitebull says...
7:40pm Thu 20 Dec 12

wyesider wrote:
It seems the council's £10+ million contribution towards super fast broadband has caused some adverse comments.
I was in Caerphilly today and a 'secret' meeting has caused outrage in that area. 20 senior council staff are to receive pay increases of up to 30%, when most council staff have seen no pay rise for 3 years.
The Chief Executive will see an increase in his pay of a mere £27,000.
The council are seeking legal advice as to whether they can rescind the pay increases, as the public are hopping mad!
It seems the gravy train is still in progress in the UK.
Apparently, if they don't pay these people vast amounts they lose the incredible talent they must obviously possess. At least it keeps them away from Hereford!
But, it does beg the question: what planet do some councillors think they are on? And do they not realise that such information will filter through to the public? I have now reached that sad point where nothing surprises me.

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jnorris235 says...
9:04pm Thu 20 Dec 12

90%? That'll be towns then. Still nothing even for major villages which are STILL waiting for BT promises (lies) to unbundle their exchanges.

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TwoWheelsGood says...
9:36pm Thu 20 Dec 12

I would imagine that by 2018, 4G, or 6G or something similar, will be cheap and universally available, rendering the Councils 'investment' worthless. The speed of technology is directly inverse to the speed our lumbering dinosaur of a Council moves at.

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megilleland says...
10:35pm Thu 20 Dec 12

The Here You Can signs are costing about £300 each. A total of 42 signs on A and B roads with a total cost of over £12,000. Add this to other costs to the taxpayer of £21,000 for 'website design' + £15,000 rebranding process


Does that come out of the contribution of £68,000 paid on 12th October to Visit Herefordshire in the Council's Expenditure for September 2012 - Transaction number 4583675 ?

https://beta.herefor
dshire.gov.uk/govern
ment-citizens-and-ri
ghts/democracy/trans
parency-council-expe
nditure-and-contract
s/

Report this post »

fmrbill says...
10:13am Fri 21 Dec 12

Ubique I note ure comments and Im no PR man but they had to go far away to find a pavement that jarvis could stand on to make him look taller than everybody esle, as he only small really, but surprising what power does to people, and he wants to look over us like his PLEBS !!!!!. Whoops can I use that word to discribe us all or it is just a word the police use nowadays

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littlewhitebull says...
10:13am Fri 21 Dec 12

megilleland wrote:
The Here You Can signs are costing about £300 each. A total of 42 signs on A and B roads with a total cost of over £12,000. Add this to other costs to the taxpayer of £21,000 for 'website design' + £15,000 rebranding process


Does that come out of the contribution of £68,000 paid on 12th October to Visit Herefordshire in the Council's Expenditure for September 2012 - Transaction number 4583675 ?

https://beta.herefor

dshire.gov.uk/govern

ment-citizens-and-ri

ghts/democracy/trans

parency-council-expe

nditure-and-contract

s/
Sorry, I don't know the source of the money. But just over £12,000 was spent by HC on the new signs. Apparently some have still to be erected.

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bobby47 says...
6:10pm Sun 23 Dec 12

Retrexs, well done kiddo. Now what you've gotta do is keep pushing this issue whenever you get the opportunity.
Me? Haven't a clue what all of it means but Im more than happy to moan about it and back you up.
You'll find the other, more knowledgeable Posters will also support you.
Well done kiddo. My warmest regards to you.

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AylestoneVoice says...
7:02pm Sun 23 Dec 12

I don't really want to joing the anti Council group which in reality all this forum is. Even if the Council solved world peace and eradicated poverty most of you would still complain.
That said the Council has reserves of about £6m and an overspend in adult social care of £5M. Technically it is bankrupt. What do they do - they save money where they can but in adult social care they appoint two new assistant directors (about £200,000 in total). Some of the Directors really need to ask themselves hard questions.

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bobby47 says...
5:09pm Mon 24 Dec 12

AylestoneVoice,You didn't want to join us but you just did. Well done my friend.
As far as the 'others' are concerned, they don't choose to moan about the Council for no good reason. they do it because they feel compelled to do it.
Me? I'll moan and groan about anything and everything the Council do because I like too. It makes me feel good about me.
If this bloody Council Leadership struck gold and they need to quickly before they go bust, I'll still be moaning about them.
As for your cleverly crafted world peace and poverty thing, there's more chance of Liza Hurley dumping Shane Warne for me than there is of this Council ever making a decision correctly and of benefit to us the paying public.
If you do choose to join our chaotic and dysfunctional band of fools then try to set aside common sense and sane, rational arguments and simply moan and groan about anything and everything that this Council Leadreship associates itself with.
My very warmest regards to you.

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