Portsmouth Council Picks MLL to Provide Connectivity Services

The Portsmouth City Council, which last year awarded Cityfibre the £3.8m Local Full Fibre Network contract to rollout a new “gigabit-capable” Ethernet and broadband network to 200 public sector sites (here), has confirmed that UK biz ISP MLL Telecom have been chosen to provide services on the related Solent Network framework.

The news that MLL will light a new Dark Fibre network infrastructure supplied by Cityfibre, and operate Wide Area Network (WAN) services for both voice and data solutions, won’t come as much of a shock to our regular readers. Indeed we already reported as much several months before the official announcement was made (here).

Under the deal MLL will deliver connectivity at a minimum data speed of 1Gbps to each site, as well as access to internet services, Microsoft Azure and the Health and Social Care Network (HSCN). The network will initially be made available to Portsmouth City Council sites and schools, with the possibility of extending access to neighbouring councils, such as Gosport Borough Council and Southampton City Council.

MLL Telecom’s appointment by Portsmouth City Council comes following a competitive bidding process, in which the ISP was awarded exclusivity on 3 out of the 4 LOTS.

Natasha Edmunds, PCC Director of Corporate Services, said:

“The Solent Network will give us the flexibility and network capacity we need to support our existing and future digital services. A key benefit will be that pupils in Portsmouth schools will be able to access cutting-edge technology and be at the forefront of the latest developments in education. We look forward to working with MLL Telecom as one of the partners in this exciting project.”

Jeremy Wastie, Regional Director of MLL Telecom, said:

“We are thrilled to have been awarded this call off contract by Portsmouth City Council on the Solent Network framework Enhanced connectivity is so important in helping public sector organisations deliver the right services to citizens and local businesses. This new infrastructure will act as a platform for Portsmouth City Council and surrounding areas for years to come, and we are excited to be contributing our expertise and experience to this project and other opportunities in the region.”

The project itself is expected to be completed by March 2021.