GBP450K Brings FTTP Broadband to Two Rural Powys Communities

Rural broadband builder Broadway Partners (aka – UK ISP Broadway Broadband) has secured another contract in Powys (Wales), worth £450,000, to extend their gigabit-capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) network to serve premises in the communities of Aberedw and Glascwm (this follows Dwyriw and Manafon).

The schemes were initially supported through Arwain, the county’s LEADER programme, and have now also received extra funding from the UK Government’s Gigabit Voucher Scheme, which includes a top-up from the Welsh Government.

Overall, around £450,000 will be invested to cover some 300 premises in the two communities, which equates to a subsidy of £1,500 per premises (it’s not known if Broadway is also contributing to this). This might seem expensive, but we’ve seen other operators quoting a lot more for a similar number of premises in such areas.

Broadway has already begun an engineering survey of the area to assess precisely how far they’ll be able to deploy the new network and how much demand there is from locals. As a result, the exact rollout plan and timescale is not yet known. But the work is also a useful reminder of just how expensive it can be to build new full fibre networks in rural areas.

Cllr Beverley Baynham, Powys County Council, said:

“We set up the pilot scheme to help these two Powys communities to improve their broadband access and in doing this we are also developing a toolkit to help other communities in the county with the same process.

If you live in Aberedw and Glascwm, and in Dwyriw and Manafon and are interested in getting ultrafast fibre broadband to the premises you can still register your interest; please contact our community broadband officer via broadband@powys.gov.uk.”

Michael Armitage, CEO of Broadway Partners, said:

“The funding in ultrafast broadband investment schemes in the Powys communities is a welcome step to connecting people and businesses in rural areas. The return to remote working has heightened demand for high-speed broadband once again, and we’re proud to have a role in ensuring these needs are met.

Given the wider lack of ultrafast fire broadband in rural areas, the schemes will bring us one step closer to bridging the rural-urban connectivity gap and provide affordable connectivity, whilst improving access to broadband. Our hope is that the scheme will offer a roadmap for even more communities to deliver ultrafast broadband and make this a reality for those who currently live outside the range of networks.”

Broadway is already quite active in Powys, such as around the communities of Llanafan Fawr and Llanwrthwl. Customers of this unlimited service typically pay from £19.99 per month for their entry-level unlimited 100Mbps (30Mbps upload) package with free installation, which rises to £69.99 if you want their top 1000Mbps (100Mbps upload) plan.