East Sussex UK Sign GBP35.44m BDUK Contract for BT Superfast Broadband

The East Sussex County Council (ESCC) in partnership with Brighton and Hove City Councils (Southern England) has signed a new £35.44 million state aid supported contract with BT to roll-out superfast broadband (25Mbps+) ISP services to 96% of local premises “within the next three years” (mid-2016).

The e-Sussex project is being supported by an investment of £10.64m from the Government’s Broadband Delivery UK (BDUK) office, £9.8m from BT and £15m from East Sussex County Council. As usual BT’s roll-out will be dominated by its up to 80Mbps FTTC technology and some 330Mbps capable FTTP.

Bill Murphy, MD of BTs Next Generation Access, said:

“This is great news for East Sussex. Fibre broadband will provide a strong, reliable connection to the rest of the world – opening new horizons, helping us to be more efficient and keeping us in touch with vital services.

Faster broadband will help local businesses grow, attracting inward investment and boosting the local economy. If they thrive then everyone thrives – local businesses are the lifeblood of every community, creating jobs and stimulating growth.”

Cllr Keith Glazier, Leader of ESCC, said:

“It’s absolutely vital this broadband technology is made available to all our residents and small businesses. We want everyone in East Sussex to have access to reliable and faster broadband within the next three years and I’m delighted by this announcement as it’s a major step forward in the project.

We know how many residents and businesses are frustrated by slow or no broadband access in East Sussex, especially in rural areas; it’s one of the biggest issues facing our county.”

Sadly the press release didn’t reveal any specifics about the roll-out or its immediate timetable, although 66,500 rural homes and businesses can expect to benefit from the improvement.

Separately Bill Murphy also said that he hopes to have the remaining 20 or so BDUK related superfast broadband contracts signed by the end of August 2013, which is more or less what the government has been aiming for since earlier this year.