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Next Generation, Low Cost Superfast Broadband for Doncaster

Council switches to Digital Region’s superfast broadband network

Doncaster Council is pleased to announce that it has signed a five year, £1m plus contract with Digital Region Limited, for the provision of its communication networks.

The new networks will cover council buildings and Doncaster schools.

The Digital Region Network is not only bringing high speed broadband to the council, its schools, its residents and its businesses; but is delivering a secure network rated highly enough to qualify for Public Sector Network accreditation.

The network migration will take less than a year to complete and will generate savings of well over £100k per year once finished. This cash saving is particularly welcome with the public sector facing an uncertain financial future. The first council buildings and schools to connect to the network will go live in October. The provision of a new network infrastructure will also help the council provide effective public services to Doncaster residents.
 
Cllr Mark Thompson, Cabinet Member for Finance & Corporate Services, Environment & Trading & Support Services, said: “It is important to Doncaster Council that we make next generation technology readily available and educate people to understand what the Internet can offer them. We know over eight million adults in the UK have never used the Internet, 17.5% of the population, and it is those people who haven’t used the Internet in Doncaster who we hope to get online via the Digital Region and show them what it can do for them.

The signing of this contract is a milestone day for Doncaster as it shows we are committing to next generation technology. The fact that children will be attending schools and benefiting from faster Internet access and web based learning materials is a major plus for the area. Those children will gain from Internet services not yet available to most schools in the UK, putting them at the forefront of the next generation of technologically astute business people and entrepreneurs. Having superfast broadband should hopefully have the added benefit of attracting new business and investment into the borough.” 

Doncaster is a major part of the Digital Region network being home to the Network Operation Centre (NOC). The state-of-the-art, multi-million pound building, based on Carolina Court, went live in November 2009 and monitors all aspects of the network.

Jeremy Sheehan, Head of Sales and Marketing, Digital Region, commented: “Our network ‘future-proofs’ the council’s communications, providing a technology foundation that greatly supports Doncaster’s vision of getting as many of its residents and businesses online as possible. Online activities are fast becoming an essential part of everyday life for both residents and businesses alike and it is great news that Doncaster is taking advantage of the Digital Region network.”

Doncaster now has the infrastructure to support a thriving digital economy, along with the Digital Region state of the art Network Operations Centre that went live at the end of last year. The signing of this contract offers the opportunity to create further employment, enabling residents and businesses to benefit from next generation broadband services and applications. We are very excited about the opportunity to work with Doncaster Council, and the signing of this contract continues to confirm the benefits of superfast broadband across the region.”

Doncaster’s switchover to the Digital Region network will mean children attending Doncaster schools will have access to the best broadband speeds available. This is great news for children and for their teachers who will benefit from higher quality, faster access to the Internet and to web based learning materials.

The first phase will see 80% of Doncaster homes and businesses being able to access the Digital Region Network and take advantage of next generation superfast broadband. The target is to reach 97% as quickly as possible.

Digital Region is wholly owned by Yorkshire Forward and the four local authorities of South Yorkshire. The four South Yorkshire local authorities and Yorkshire Forward attracted European, regional, local and private investment of over £90m, including £30m from the European Regional Development Fund for the project.

For further information please see the Digital Region website which has information that tells you when the network reaches where you are and contact details for Internet Service Providers (www.digitalregion.co.uk).